Further Complications
by LittleMewLugia
Summary: After getting Mikaela and Optimus back into their own bodies, a kidnap attempt by Starscream leaves Sam and the Decepticon leader stuck in each other’s bodies. Things are about to get really complicated. Sequel to “Complications.
1. Chapter 1

Further Complications

Further Complications

Summary: After getting Mikaela and Optimus back into their own bodies, a kidnap attempt by Starscream leaves Sam and the Decepticon leader stuck in each other's bodies. Sequel to "Complications.

Rating: T for mech potty-mouth

Disclaimer: Transformers belongs to Hasbro and Dreamworks/Paramount, not me.

A/N When I talk about Sam, I am talking of Sam's mind in Starscream's body. When I talk of Starscream, I'm talking of Starscream's mind in Sam's body.

Further Complications.

Prologue

"Thank Primus it's dark!" said Optimus, from one side of Sam, supporting him on that side.

"Thank Primus we have night sight, and Bumblebee can get Starscream back to the Base inside his vehicle form." said Ratchet. "I've warned Ironhide of what has happened, so he's prepared. He says he'll furnish a lockable room with human furnishings. We can't let him wander around until we've explained our rules and he's used to being in a human body. I don't want Sam's body damaged because Starscream doesn't understand how frail it is."

"Neither do I." said Sam, staggering between them unevenly. "How the hell does Starscream walk on legs like this?"

"He's probably wondering the same thing about humans as we speak." Ratchet said wryly. "Think of it as walking on tiptoe. Those things you're thinking of as backwards-pointing knees are actually ankles by your standards."

"Why can't we do what you did with Mikaela in your body, and you teach me how to use this body?" Sam asked.

"For the same reason human driving instructors don't train fighter plane pilots - lack of expertise in steering and controlling the vehicle in question. Neither of us are flyers, so neither of us can give you a crash course in flying – unless 'crashing' is what you want to do."

"No thanks." muttered Sam. "My stomach – well, I suppose strictly speaking, it's now my undercarriage – still hurts from the crash-landing at the Lookout."

"Well, we're nearly there now." Ratchet said encouragingly. "I can see the Base lights from here!"

Half-an-hour later, Ratchet and Optimus helped Sam it on Ratchet's worktable with his back against the wall. Starscream was also there, eyeing the hands of the body he wore with disgust. He looked up as Sam.

"How do you fleshbags walk on these two meat sacks you dignify with the term 'legs' when the joints don't point the right way?" Starscream asked sulkily. He looked at 'his' hands again with undisguised revulsion.

"Well, how about we answer that one when we figure out what to do about this situation?" Ratchet said dryly. "That is just one of many new experiences you'll have to learn about, Starscream, along with

eating, sleeping and excreting." Hew turned his gaze on Sam, who was trying not to smirk. "Just as you, Sam, will have to learn about refuelling, recharging, and transforming." Sam stopped smirking and looked more serious.

"Don't worry, Sam." Mikaela said. "If you're like me, it'll be fun! When you learn to fly, would you take me for a ride? I'll never get the opportunity again."

"Yeah, sure, Mikaela, if I learn enough to get off the ground without crashing again straight away, before we get switched back – whenever that'll be." Said Sam

"Well, yes, that is another subject we need to discuss-what to do with you both until that moment comes." Ratchet said.


	2. Chapter 2

Further Complications

Chapter One

Warning: Implied Starscream/Thundercracker intimacy.

Two days later, the Autobot base.

"Well, at least I can walk about without falling over now." said Sam.

"At least when you fall in _my_ body, you don't leak and get damaged. This pathetic fleshy body of yours is ridiculously fragile!" said Starscream, who was sitting on the edge of ratchet's table as Mikaela stuck another Band-aid on him, this time on his knee. He had several on his hands, elbows and knees, and three on his face – one on the chin, one on the cheek, and one on the forehead.

"Perhaps you shouldn't be so impatient." She chided him. "I've heard of the expression 'trying to run before you can walk', but you're the first practical example of it I've ever seen! Slow down and learn to do it slowly at first, then progress up to being faster."

"That's easy for _you_ to say." He said to her. "I have a base and followers to get back to." Starscream said. Then he turned to look up at where Sam was standing, towering over everyone in the room. "Though seeing _you _trying to learn how to fly is going to be some real entertainment that I just might stick around for."

"I think I have an idea on that." Ratchet said. "Sam, come with me. Starscream, you have been walking around in that body without sleep fort almost a full twenty-four hours. I've shown you where you can recharge the human body, so _use it!"_

"Eight hours out of every twenty-four?" whined Starscream. "Eight hours of recharge keeps my body going for a _week!_"

"Yeah, well you're _not_ in your body you're in _mine_, and as Ratchet explained, for you to get back to yours, mine needs to stay _healthy_, or you die and I stay stuck. So I'll thank you to look after it! Unless you really _want_ to die in my body and leave me alive in yours?" Sam said, not in a diplomatic mood at seeing how banged up Starscream's carelessness and impatience was leaving his body.

"Oh, all right." Starscream said sulkily. "No _wonder _your species is so technologically backwards if you have to spend a _third_ of your pitifully short lifetimes in recharge!" Ratchet picked Starscream up off his table carefully, and set him on the floor, and he stalked off to the bed Ratchet had made up for him. If optics could be rolled, Sam would have rolled them.

"Thank God he's gone! Much more moaning, and I'd have _slugged_ him one!" Mikaela hissed.

"Well, I'm glad you didn't!" said Sam. "Starscream's abused my body enough without you adding to it!" He turned to Ratchet.

"So what's this idea you have regarding getting me to fly?" he asked.

"Well, Sam, as you know, we had to ring the Decepticon base to explain that Starscream had been hit by lightning and was currently being repaired. Technically true, even if we didn't explain all the circumstances. We call, say you've had a problem with memory loss-you've forgotten how to transform and fly, and we ask for Thundercracker to come, to connect to you via datalink – I can teach you how to initiate a datalink- and feed you the how-to-fly info. I'm suggesting Thundercracker, because not only is he not as vicious as Skywarp, but he loves flight, and so I think he would agree, I think he would not deny flight to another Seeker. whereas Skywarp might just refuse to comply."

"How do we convince Thundercracker that it's not a trap?"

"Think you can imitate Starscream over a com?" Ratchet asked. Sam nodded: he'd been carefully trying to imitate Starscream's syntax and tone since they had both gone to the Base. Ratchet had warned him that the Decepticons might want proof that 'Starscream' was all right and not being held prisoner at the Autobot base.

"Okay, I contact them, tell them you need to relearn how to fly, invite Thundercracker out here, give him an assurance under Protocol Five of the Treaty of Iacon – that's a treaty the Decepticons know we'll honour – that he will be free to go once he's done the data transfer. Then you speak to him, telling him that you trust us to honour our deal, us being honourable Autobots and all that." Ratchet said. "So he comes, does the transfer, you tell him that you want to stay a few more days, as you have our assurances that you are free to go whenever you wish but there are still parts you want me to do – that'll buy us more time, they know I'm a good medic –he leaves, and we decide what to do after that." Ratchet says. "You'll at least be able to fly."

Sam nodded. "Okay, let's do it. Let's do it now, while Starscream is in recharge so he can't balls things up." Sam said.

"Are you sure you're ready now, that you don't need a bit more time to get into character, Sam?"

Sam lifted his head, and said in a haughty tone "Are you going to allow me to contact my people, Medic, so I can get this indignity of having to learn to fly, as if I were a Sparkling again, over?" Ratchet grinned at him.

"Come right this way, Supreme Decepticon Leader Starscream." He said. "The com equipment is over here…."

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Sam played his part to the max, Ratchet reflected, and they had secured a promise from the Decepticons that Thundercracker would be at the Autobot base within two hours. For their part, they promised to lower the force-field once he'd landed and was scanned to be sure his weapons were powered down, so he could enter. The force field would be left down until he left as long as there was no threat of the others attacking: Thundercracker said he would keep that fact to himself so as to avoid temptation.

As promised, Thundercracker arrived within the two hours, performing a graceful landing outside the gate. Ironhide scanned him, confirmed that no weapons were online, and lowered the force-field before opening the gate to admit him.

Sam was waiting for him, with Ratchet next to him: as it was early in the morning, the Base lights were on, so they could see.

"Thundercracker, let's get this over with. I want to feel the wind caress my body as I fly through the air again." Sam said.

Thundercracker walked over, and to Sam's surprise, lay a hand gently on his chest.

"Of course, my Lord Starscream." he said. Sam initiated a data link as Ratchet had taught him, and Thundercracker began the upload of information.

It hit him like a physical force. Suddenly, he knew not just _how_ to fly in this body, but what it was like, how it _felt_ to fly under his own power, to throw himself into the air and be free from the ground below. He realised he was feeling Thundercracker's _own_ feelings, the fierce joy the Decepticon felt at having the freedom of the air, and it was _breathtaking_.

He realised, as the feelings receded, that he has stumbled backwards and his knees had loosened. He was being supported by Ratchet from the back, and Thundercracker was holding his shoulders, arms partially around them and fingers splayed, spread wide so as to not put the thin wing ends under too much strain from the weight of his body. The Seeker's red optics gazed into his with some worry and confusion.

"Lord Starscream, what's the matter?" he asked.

"Your gyros need realigning some more it seems, Starscream." Ratchet said. He nodded to Thundercracker. "Thank you. As we promised, you are free to go." Sam gripped Ratchet's shoulder to push himself upright as Thundercracker helped steady him, and then stepped back, dropping his arms from Sam's suddenly tingling wings. What was the tingling about, he wondered, but did not ask.

"Thank you, Thundercracker. I believe the Autobots will keep their agreement, they are bound by their own honour. I will return when I am mended."

"You have five days to repair our leader and return him to us, Autobot." Thundercracker said to Ratchet. "Even that is generous, for he looks in much better physical health than I had thought he would be." He turned to address Sam.

"If these Autobots do not return within five days, we will come in force to rescue you, brother." Thundercracker said. Once again, he touched Sam's chest, this time only momentarily. Then he turned, took off, transformed, and screamed off in jet form.

"Okay, this could be problematic. We have five days to come up with a solution." Ratchet said. "However, for now, do you feel up to practicing your flying skills?"

"Yes." Sam whispered, remembering the feelings he had received from Thundercracker. "Yes, I do."

Turning, he tapped into the information, leaped for the air, and transformed. A few minutes later, he was just a dot in the sky.

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When Sam returned, four hours later, Starscream was up, awake, and in a foul mood. Mikaela, however, was exhausted, and would not wake for several hours.

"You should have woken me, we could have told Thundercracker the truth and he could have flown me back to the Base!" Starscream whined.

"Are you sure that he would have believed you? He could have just squished you." Ratchet said.

"No, I would have got you or Sam to hold me, and you could have told him. Then I could have told him some things only I and my wing-brothers known, and that would have convinced him." Starscream said.

"Assuming you could have, what about the others? Could you make them believe, and even if you could, _don't _tell me that there aren't those there who might not see "accidentally" squishing you as a way of taking the leadership." Ratchet said.

Starscream actually paled, sweat breaking out on the face of the human body he wore.

"Yes, you're right, of course. There _are_ a few I don't trust. I can't go back, not like _this_, but if they don't get me back, they'll either attack here – and possibly kill me in the process anyway – or they'll abandon me, turn on my wing-brothers, and hold a leadership contest." He said.

"That could be bad for _your_ people as well, Sam, if the challengers decide that breaking, killing, or enslaving humans-or even your whole planet – is a viable part of the challenge criteria." Ratchet said.

"is there anything we can do?" Sam asked.

"We can pray there'll be a storm within five days, or hope I manage to design something to change you back within that timescale. Neither are very promising I'm afraid." Ratchet said gravely. Then he gave a start, his optics brightening.

"Actually, Sam, with Starscream's help, there _is_ something you could do!" he said.

"What's that? Sam asked. Ratchet didn't answer, instead turning to Starscream.

"Did I tell you how good an act Sam put on out there? I don't think I did, did I? Had I not known differently, _I_ would have thought that he was you. He certainly managed to fool Thundercracker. With your help on certain details, I bet Sam could put on an Oscar-winning act for your followers, Starscream!"

He turned back to Sam.

"Supreme Decepticon Leader Starscream, of _course_ we can return you to your followers in five days, if you agree, of course."

Sam realised what Ratchet was suggesting, and felt light headed. Even Starscream had worked it out, and to Sam's horror, was nodding slowly.

"You are _joking_, aren't you?" Sam asked, even though deep down, he knew that he was not.


	3. Chapter 3

Further Complications

Chapter Two.

A/N Thanks to KdZeal for being my beta, and help with stats and Soundwave in this chapter.

As Ratchet had surmised, the following five days had not produced a storm, and neither was Ratchet very much closer to finding a way to putting the human boy and the Decepticon leader back into their own bodies.

Once Sam had resigned himself to this-about an hour after Ratchet had first suggested it – Sam had applied himself to the task of learning to act as Starscream full-time diligently. Starscream reluctantly let Sam in on current plans – which didn't seem to be particularly worrying, as the Decepticons were currently trying to keep a low profile and decide what they would be working on next. He practised answering questions set by Ratchet, which Starscream attended to correct Sam if he got the intonation or reaction wrong. Starscream was less than gracious about this, but did give his assistance.

One thing Sam did start doing almost from the moment he accepted the situation was to try to be in character from the moment he came out of recharge until he went back into recharge, which sometimes made some of his responses to the simplest queries seem a bit obnoxious, but thankfully the rest of the Autobots understood the reason for it. Of course, to get used to it, Sam had to be addressed as 'Starscream' and 'Lord Starscream' – something that Sam absolutely _hated_ but had to put up with. Starscream found it quite amusing but then, Starscream being Starscream, that was only to be expected.

The time passed quicker than Sam would have liked, during which time, on top of everything else, he practised flying, transforming, walking, running, firing his weapons and sending databursts and communicating by comm - all totally routine functions that he would be expected to know almost instinctively.

All too soon it was the morning of the fifth day, and both Ratchet and Starscream were doing some last minute checking and informing. Although Starscream had been less than eager to help at the beginning, he knew that in some ways he stood to lose as much or more than Sam if the latter's cover was blown and the truth exposed, so he was keen to help Sam pretend to be him for his own purposes. Ratchet was secretly glad that Starscream had realised this, for more than once the Decepticon had pointed out flaws in the boy's performance that would have made the other Decepticons at best suspicious and at worst guess that something was seriously awry.

They went out onto the spacious courtyard.

"You had best go now," Ratchet said. "Your Decepticons await your return.

"Very well, Autobot," responded Sam, staying in character. "I suppose I should thank you for the medical assistance. Lower your force field and stand back."

Everyone stood by, and then Ironhide signalled that the force-field was down, and Sam engaged his jets, rising into the air, converted to jet form, and screamed off and up, in the direction of the Decepticon base.

Everybody stood watching until he was no longer visible. Ratchet blew air through his vents.

"Well, that's that. It's up to Sam now, lets hope his acting skills are up to it. With a bit of luck, any minor mistakes will be put down to after- effects of the lightning strike on his processors," Ratchet said.

"I hope he looks after my body!" Starscream said sourly. Mikaela raised an eyebrow at him, looking pointedly at the Band-aids dotting the body of Sam.

"He can't make much worse of a job than you are of looking after his," Mikaela said.

"Let's go in, all we can do now is wait and see, and hope," said Ratchet.

Turning, he went into the Base, Starscream and Mikaela following him.

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As the Base came into view, Sam flipped back into robot form - glad that Ironhide had made him practice till he could do it smoothly - and came to a landing.

Immediately, Thundercracker and Skywarp came out, followed by Barricade, and another mech he recognised from Starscream's description of him. The medium-sized blue and white mech with the battle mask and glassy-looking panel in his chest, who was just a few feet shorter than Optimus, could only be Soundwave.

Sam had been thinking over what to say, running it over in his head.

"Now that I'm away from that tiresome medic, I want to know what progress you have all made." He walked into the main hall Starscream had told him about. The others followed him in, and he saw the small, single opticked red mech Swindle, the black mech he had been told was Dead End, the little Frenzy, and the security truck-mech Payload.

"How are you, Lord Starscream. What happened?" asked Skywarp.

Sam was glad he HAD asked Starscream how he had come to be flying over the Lookout in a storm, this way he could tell the truth.

"I was flying behind a thunderstorm when I saw the fleshy boy exposed on a hill. I saw it as an opportunity, and swooped down to catch him but got struck by lightning. The Autobot medic took me back to their Base, although I was confined to certain areas, and fixed me. He warned my processors may still be affected by the strike," he paused. "You were all doing work when I had my unfortunate accident. Report on your progress," Sam continued.

"Very well, Lord Starscream," agreed Barricade, and he began his report.

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You don't like me, do you, fleshling?" asked Starscream to Mikaela, catching her up in the corridor.

"No, I don't and drop the 'fleshling', you're as fleshy as I am at the moment, so cut it out," Mikaela told him.

"Why don't you like me?" he asked, pouting at her. She thought it was an expression that didn't sit well on Sam's face. She sighed, stopping and leaning back against a wall.

"Now, let me see….You shot at us in the Hoover dam, blew Bumblebee's legs off, menaced Sam when he was on the roof, shot down the helicopter that was trying to rescue the AllSpark, destroyed several jets, and tried to kidnap Sam on the hill a week ago." She ticked off all the points on her fingers as she listed them. "And you wonder why I don't like you?" she asked, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Even though I am in the body of your mate?" he asked. She dropped her arms.

"_Especially _as you are in the body of my mate!" she said. "The sooner you two are back in your own bodies, the better!"

"But…you like this body, don't you?" he asked, moving too close to Mikaela for her comfort. Feeling threatened, she pushed her back against the wall.

"You're invading my personal space, buster. Back off!" she said.

"Wouldn't you like to participate in a little experiment of human and Cybertronian examples of foreplay on a human body?" he asked. "I am considered very skilled amongst my own people."

"Get lost!" said Mikaela in outrage. "Of all the conceited…just back off and leave me alone. This is your only warning," she said.

"Oh come on, just a kiss?" asked Starscream, Sam's brown eyes widening guilelessly, an illusion that did not fool Mikaela. Then, before she could react, Starscream brought his hands up to her shoulders, shoving her roughly against the wall, and pressed his mouth to hers.

His kiss was hard and harsh, and Mikaela squeaked and struggled, and as Starscream kept her pinned to the wall, she became aware of how very strong Sam's body really was, in spite of it's wiriness. Fear ran through her as Starscream pressed Sam's body up against her. Gathering her wits, she steeled herself. As an attractive girl with no father around to protect her, Mikaela had learned to look after herself, and she knew _exactly_ what to do in this situation. She had, after all, _warned_ him to back off.

She grabbed hold of the arms to steady herself, and brought her left knee up, hard, between Starscream's legs.

Starscream broke the kiss with a high-pitched scream and fell over, hands disappearing between his legs, as he rolled on one side, groaning.

"I said _no,_" she said. "No _means_ no, Starscream. If you touch me like that again, I'll show you other places on a human body that can cause pain if struck. Now, you should recover in ten minutes, but stay away from me in future, do you hear?"

Without waiting for an answer from Starscream, Mikaela walked away. Only when she was out of sight did she drop her face into her hands and breathe hard, allowing herself to shake a little in reaction, but did not cry. She took a few more deep breaths to calm herself, and then composed herself, and walked into the medbay.

Ratchet looked up. "Hello, Mikaela, what can I do for you today?" he asked.

"I can't keep my mind from worrying about Sam. I wondered if I could give you a hand here." she said. Ratchet nodded to a storeroom.

"The Army gave us a load of medical supplies, There's pen and paper in there. Could you take inventory of all the small fiddly things - human bandages and dressings and thin wires and parts and so forth?"

"Sure, Ratchet," she said, and walked to the indicated room.

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Sam nodded as the last of the mechs gave their reports.

He was a little in over his head, but not much, as for most of the projects he could tell the mechs to keep doing what they were doing, but he wondered what he'd do if things changed. He decided not to worry about it, and deal with that when he had to.

"REQUEST-TO-SPEAK-IN-PRIVATE," said Soundwave in his harmonic voice.

Sam nodded. He followed the blue-and white mech into an adjoining room.

"Yes, Soundwave?" he asked in Starscream's haughty manner.

"SAMUEL-WITWICKY-IS-NOT-STAR-SCREAM," Soundwave stated.

Sam wished he was human again so he could swallow in the same way as he realised that somehow, Soundwave had rumbled him.


	4. Chapter 4

Further Complications

Chapter Four

A/N Once again, thanks for KDzeal on getting Soundwave right in this chapter.

"EXPLAIN-HOW," Soundwave stated. It took Sam a few moments to realise that Soundwave wanted him to explain how he had ended up in Starscream's body. Oh well, he was likely going to be seriously hurt or killed soon, but he may as well let this mech know that it was an accident. It was no good trying to bluff his way out of this, it was no coincidence it was too spot-on, somehow this mech knew his identity.

"Starscream was holding me in my own body when the lightning struck." Sam said. "It swapped us over. We were up there getting Optimus and Mikaela back in their own bodies. It was kind of Mikaela in Optimus' body who kicked Barricade halfway across the highway earlier." He sighed. "I suppose you're going to tell everyone now."

"BETTER-IDEA," Soundwave said. "CURRENT-STABILITY-BENEFICIAL. SAM-WITWICKY-HELP; SECRET-WILL-NOT-BE-TOLD."

Sam's optics shuttered, the Cybertronian equivalent of a blink, a glimmer of hope starting in him. Was Soundwave trying to bargain with him?

"Help you how?" Sam asked.

"GIVE-LEEWAY-ON-OWN-PROJECTS. SOMETIMES-STARSCREAM-REFUSE. ALLOW; SECRET-WILL-BE-KEPT."

"Yeah, okay," said Sam. He couldn't really see any harm in it, and it wasn't as if he really had much choice.

"IT-IS-AGREED?" Soundwave asked.

"Agreed." Sam said.

Without a further word, Soundwave turned and left the room.

Sam was still busy thinking through what had just transpired and thinking about just how lucky he had been when his com was blipped. He just had time to find out that Thundercracker had blipped it when he walked in, followed by Skywarp. They walked straight over, not stopping in front of him, but one going to the side and the other to the back.

The one with the bluish-grey camo design – Thundercracker – put one hand on his right arm and the other on the mobile flap on his right shoulder as the green and black camo-patterned Skywarp put his hands on what, in plane form, were his tail-fins. The touches from the big metal hands made tingles spread all over his hide. Startled, Sam looked at Thundercracker, who was now gently stroking his arm.

"We are pleased to see you have returned, brother." Stated Thundercracker. "Skywarp and I, we missed you." Sam twitched as Skywarp slid his hands around to the edges of the fins and began stroking them up and down. Sam found this motion pleasant…disconcertingly so. However, he had to assume that this was the normal way the three Seekers greeted each other, so fought back the urge to pull away. He did not want his cover blown.

It was even more disconcerting when Skywarp stepped up close to Sam's back, so close that his cockpit, smooth and warm, was pressed into the small of Sam's back. The tingling from the fins being stroked was swamped by the frisson of pleasure that that simple act set streaking along the limbs and wings of the body he wore. It was as he felt the Seeker behind him put his head between the tailfins and kiss and what felt like dry-lick him that Sam began to realise that the relationship between Seeker brothers went deeper than he realised…..and there was no way he could pull away without arousing suspicion.

The fact that the areas being touched seemed exceptionally sensitive did not help him figure out a gracious method of exit without raising suspicion. In fact, it was having the opposite effect. Every stroke, lick or caress was shattering his concentration into smaller and smaller pieces as the loving assault on his hide continued. As Thundercracker shifted the hand on his arm to the seam on his side, Sam could not stop his body shuddering with pleasure at the contact, and when Thundercracker stroked the hand down the seam, he could not help but let out a gasp.

"That's right, brother, relax." Thundercracker said in response. He stood closer, and as his cockpit gently touched Sam's own, he felt an almost electric surge of energy shoot right up his body. His optics seemed to white out for a moment, and then Thundercracker's other hand was gently stroking his frontal wing surface as the first hand continued stroking up and down the side seam.

His own hands came up in reflex, meeting Thundercracker's metal hide. Thundercracker moved to his front, pressing against the hands, cockpit surfaces sliding against each other, sending a welter of sensations and feelings – all of them pleasurable – up and down his body. As Skywarp's hands left his tail fins and slid smoothly down his back, Sam felt the sensations from the back begin to fade. Just as he thought he might be able to cope with the sensations the touches were creating, he felt Skywarp's hands on his wing leading edges, one gripping an edge, the other caressing along it, as Skywarp continued to kiss between the tail fins. Sam let out a shriek of pure pleasure, his hand reflexively closing on the armour of Thundercracker, who responded with a moan of his own.

Sam supposed he should have realised that in a plane, the wings were highly sensitive, after all, fliers were dancers in the air, every touch of wind or water could affect their flight, the wings had to be sensitive so the flier could adapt to any change in the airflow over and under the wings. As Sam's optics shuttered with a will of their own, he felt like he was flying even as he stood on the ground, as Thundercracker leaned forwards to plant a kiss on his neck seam. As with Skywarp, he felt Thundercracker dry-licking the joint, his tongue-equivalent probing at the seam. Sam heard a high-pitched keen start up, then dimly from within the haze of pleasure realised it was coming from him.

Every human emotion was telling Sam that he should pull away and to hell with the consequences, to not let this continue, that he was not Starscream, that this was wrong on so many levels. However, this small part was being very swiftly drowned out by the growing part of him that had ceased to care and just wanted more. As Thundercracker transferred the hand on his wing surface from the expanse to the highly-sensitive trailing edge, the protesting part of his mind lost the fight. Sam's arms slid from Thundercracker's sides to his back and slid up Thundercracker's wings as Sam pulled the arctic-camouflaged seeker closer, wanting the other to give him the same again and more.

He heard the blue and grey Seeker moan at his touch, instinct more than sense telling Sam to allow his hands to glide over the wing-edges and stroke over the surface, willing to reciprocate as long as the other Seeker continued to stimulate his own hide. Sam was acutely aware of the cockpit-to-cockpit contact, the hand on his trailing wing-edge, the digits now working their way firmly but carefully into his side seam, the touch of Thundercracker's agile tongue on his neck seam. He was also strongly aware of Skywarp's clutches and caresses on his trailing edges, the dry-licks and mouth-movements around his back neck-joint and between the tail fins, as Skywarp moved his head up and around and down the area, was acutely aware of Skywarp's smooth, warm cockpit at his back.

One hand left Thundercracker's hide and bent backwards in a direction impossible for a human arm to without double joints, to slide around Skywarp's back and pull him, too, closer. Skywarp dropped one hand from one wing and brought his hand upwards in a sweeping, caressing motion that brought his hand ghosting along the surfaces of both Sam's and Thundercracker's pressed-together cockpits. The touch made both mechs cry out and shudder, hands clutching at each other, legs shifting to support themselves better.

One of Thundercracker's hands lifted, the one on Sam's wing-edge, ad he groaned in disappointment at the loss of the touch. As he felt Skywarp arch against him and heard him keen, he realised that Thundercracker was bestowing some caresses on Skywarp as well. The almost-painful increased pressure Skywarp put on the wing-edges as he clutched at them in reaction sent a shot of almost unbearable pressure up Sam's body. He was surprised but not concerned as he felt his body throb as his engines stuttered to a start. As the engine power built and the pitch rose with the rising desire and pleasure in his body, Sam realised the pleasure had built up to unsustainable levels as his optics shuttered and he felt the energy from the stimulation he was given sweep away his consciousness.

As Sam cried out, tensed and then collapsed in overload, Thundercracker and Skywarp gently lowered him to the floor, carefully lying him on his front with his hands beneath his wings so he could push himself back up when he came back online. The positioning was deliberate: no Seeker, with their wide wings, felt safe on their back, and again due to the wings, turning them sideways on a hard surface was a no-go. Frontwise was the most sensible option.

Thundercracker and Skywarp smirked at each other: it was a long, long time since they had overloaded Starscream so quickly and so thoroughly. They worked out that there would be enough time till he fully awoke to bring each other to overload, as charged as they were. Shifting slightly so that the prone seeker next to them did not get in the way, hands stroked heads and wings and cockpits, and glossas teased joints and seams and edges. It didn't take long till they followed Sam into overload, although their recovery was somewhat quicker than his.

Patiently they watched, waiting for him to reboot.

Sam came out of it muzzily, his thoughts still in disarray. As he sat up, he felt hands gently beginning to trace circles on the backs of his wings. Thundercracker came and crouched in front of him – which told him who was continuing to caress his wings. As highly charged he had been, even just that locked him up again, unable to speak or move much. Then Thundercracker leaned forwards and pressed his metal mouth to his, the lips opening and his tongue slipping out to twine with his own. Sam had found that with humans the same experience was unpleasantly wet and slimy, but that was one thing lacking in this encounter, something Sam definitely decided was a plus. As Thundercracker put his hands o his shoulders, and Skywarp snaked one hand around to caress his cockpit, Sam began to shake and was started to hear his engines once again start up. Still riding high on the feelings of the previous overloads and not having had time to come down totally, his second overload happened faster than his first.

As the feelings took him, Sam's last coherent thought was to wonder just where Thundercracker had learned to kiss like that.


	5. Chapter 5

Further Complications

Further Complications.

Chapter Four.

Starscream threw the games console control from himself in a huff. Playing flying games on the PS2 Lennox had rigged up for Sam before he'd gone back to Qatar wasn't even close to what Starscream was used to doing for real. Stupid lightning storm! Stupid inadequate human bodies! He couldn't even go and talk to Optimus to wind him up for fun any more, as Optimus had gotten wise to Starscream's requests 'for a chat' and had told the other Autobots to find out what he wanted before opening the door for him, which he needed them to do for him now he couldn't comm the door to request entry any more. He didn't dare try to hang around Mikaela any more, not after the kneeing and her warning the other day.

"Bored." He muttered, getting up and striding out of the room. He almost walked into Miles, who grabbed his arm and said "Hey, Sam, come out and see my new wheels!"

Any other time, Starscream might have shaken Miles off, but he was bored and, he realised, lonely, so he played along and let Miles lead him out of the Base to the car park.

The Autobots had a collection of cars for the purposes of scanning them if they fancied a change of alt, and Starscream was at first hard-pressed to see Miles' car amongst the others. It took Miles walking up to the battered blue junker for Starscream to realise that was his car.

"Well, what do you think?" Miles asked with a proud grin. Starscream thought, quite frankly, that the car looked a mess, especially amongst the Autobots well looked-after vehicles, but had learned a little about the value of discretion if he wanted to stay on friendly terms, and it seemed nobody had yet told Sam's friend who he really was. Starscream decided to see how long he could get away with pretending to be Sam. After all, he thought, Sam was pretending to be _him_ to _his_ friends, so it was only fair Starscream himself should have some fun doing likewise!

"Yeah, it's cool." Starscream said, having picked up some expressions from Sam before he'd practiced going into character as Starscream, and Mikaela. It must have been something that Sam would have said because Miles grinned in agreement.

"Yeah. Wanna ride to town and back?"

"Okay." said Starscream, seeing a chance to do something different to break the boredom of the day. He pulled open the passenger seat door and rather awkwardly got in.

Miles glanced over, and seemed to notice the Band-aids for the first time.

"Hey, what happened to you, man, you look worse than when you came back from that mysterious visit to Mission City!"

"I fell over." Starscream said, sharper than he meant to.

"Hey, man, why so touchy?" Miles said. "Look, it's no big deal!" Starscream realised he might alienate Miles, so worked to ameliorate the situation.

"Sorry Miles…it's been a bad week." He said, hoping that Miles would be mollified. He didn't want to risk Miles pitching him out of the car while they were out at the town.

"Okay, man, let's hit town." Miles said, starting the car. He waved at Ironhide as the big mech opened the gate and lowered the force-field to let him out.

As Miles' car pulled away, Ironhide noticed that Miles had a passenger, and it didn't look like Mikaela. He beeped Optimus.

"Hey, Prime, what time did Miles say he'd bring Starscream back, and where's he taking him, anyway? Just so I know when to expect them?"

"What do you mean?" Optimus answered.

"Miles came in earlier, didn't he talk to you? He's just driven out of here with Starscream in the front seat. You did give him permission to go out of the Base with Miles, didn't you?"

"No, I didn't." Optimus said. "I'll call Bumblebee and ask him to go after and find them." He sighed. "Trust Starscream to be awkward and leave without checking it's OK first."

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It took Bumblebee one and a half hours to find Miles and Starscream, he lucked out, seeing them in a burger bar drinking Cokes that Miles had bought. He parked, and activated his younger-form holoform – a lanky blonde boy with two black stripes dyed into his hair. It was the holoform that Miles was used to, and Starscream would realise who he was, but it wouldn't alarm everyone else. After checking to make sure his sudden change of appearance from brown-haired, mustached thirtysomething to blonde teen in the car had not been noticed, grabbed some of the change Sam kept in the glove box, then stepped out and walked over to their table.

"Hi Sam, hi Miles." He said, sitting down at the table, and looking directly at Starscream. Still unused to his human body, Starscream's blush gave away the fact he knew he hadn't been meant to go out unannounced.

"Hey, Bee, good to see ya." Miles said, missing the blush and the resentful look Starscream gave Bumblebee entirely. "Sorry, I guess we shoulda invited you to come with us."

"Well, I'm here now, so no harm done. We can hang round town a bit, but then we should all go back to the Base." Bumblebee said. He sent a databurst to Prime: _'Starscream located. Will stay with him and bring him back later.'_ Bumblebee knew how stressed Sam could get if he was kept inside, and figured Starscream just wanted a change of scenery. As he was with him, Bumblebee could see no harm in it. He received an affirmative databurst from Prime, which pleased him. At least that was settled.

He turned to Miles, handing him some of the money he'd brought in. "Hey, Miles, get Sam and yourself another drink, huh?" he said. As Miles turned and went to buy the other drinks, Bumblebee leaned in towards Starscream.

"You do know he'll have to be told?" he said.

"Why?" asked Starscream. "I'm doing a pretty good job of being Sam, and Sam is imitating me."

"There's no need." Bumblebee said. "Miles will understand and he'll be cool with it. You are in an unfamiliar world in an unfamiliar body. You could end up endangering Sam's body and your own life, simply by being ignorant of things Sam would know."

Starscream sat and thought about it.

"I see your point." He said slowly. "You're sure Sam's squishy friend won't mind much?"

"Miles is very easy going. When Sam introduced him to Optimus, after his initial fear, he was okay with it. He'll be fine." Bumblebee leaned forwards.

"Also, if you get Miles talking about military aircraft, you'll be hard-pressed to shut him up. He's an enthusiast. What's more, his very favourite military jet is one _you_ are intimately acquainted with – the F-22 Raptor."

Starscream grinned.

"Well, for a human, he has impeccable taste." Starscream said as Miles came back over with two more Cokes.

"Who has impeccable taste?" Miles asked as he sat down, pushing one coke over to Starscream.

"You do." Starscream said.

"I do?" Miles asked, confused.

"Look, Miles, there is something we need to tell you." Bumblebee said. "The first thing is, although you should still call him Sam, and treat him like Sam, that isn't Sam."

Bumblebee held up a hand to forestall Miles' questions, and quietly began to explain.

Once Bumblebee had finished Miles was staring at Starscream. Starscream looked back at Miles almost challengingly.

"Well?" Starscream said. "Any questions?

"You're really an F-22 in vehicle form?" Miles asked.

Starscream blinked. He'd expected awkward questions about why he had done this or that, not a question about his alt mode.

"Yes, I am. It was the most advanced plane on this planet at the time, well armed and stealthy." He said.

"Cool!" was Miles' reply.

They made a brief stop at Miles' house to pick up some aircraft books, and then headed back to the Base, and went to speak to Optimus.

Miles had been totally freaked the first time Sam had introduced him to Optimus and the others, but by now he was used to him. Optimus sat and listened patiently while Miles suggested that he come around and take Starscream out every other day of the holidays, as much as to get him used to being human as to keep him from getting bored and pulling a similar stunt.

"After all, if he is with me, he is still supervised, right, and I can help him learn those little things he needs to know." Miles said.

Optimus nodded in agreement. "I agree, it is a good idea." He said. "Okay, Miles, thank you." He said. "I will give Starscream some money so that he is not a drain on your finances." He said. He opened his desk drawer, and took out a thick wad of bills, handing it to Starscream, who showed it to Miles. His eyes opened as he saw it was a thick wad of hundred-dollar bills.

"Will that be enough?" Optimus asked.

"Uhh…yeah, I'll say so!" Miles said. "I'll be back tomorrow to pick you up, Starscream, OK?" he said.

"Sam, remember, you still got to call him Sam." Bumblebee cautioned.

"Oh, okay." Said Miles. "See you tomorrow, Sam?

"Yes." said Starscream, who then headed back to his room without even a slight moan.

If Bumblebee had had a mouth, he would have smiled.

It seemed that the life of a human teenager suited Starscream just fine.

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It seemed Miles and Starscream got on well enough, neither of them complained in the intervening week. Each day, Miles picked Starscream up in his junker, and they went to Miles' house, or out round the town. All seemed trouble free on the Friday, when Miles and Starscream walked in to report to Bumblebee on the day's activities.

"Hiya, Bumblebee, guess what Sam and I did today?" he said. Bumblebee noticed that Starscream was hanging back a bit

"What's that?" asked Bumblebee.

"We used some of the money Optimus gave Starscream to get some tattoos." said Miles. He pulled up his sleeve to show an F-22 jet, and below it the Cybertronian glyphs that represented Starscream's name.

Bumblebee was speechless, his optics widening. Starscream had put a claim on Miles? He had his doubts that Starscream had asked Miles, or explained the significance of the tattoo. Before he could make any reply, Starscream, sensing Bumblebee's disapproval, moved forward to pull up his own sleeve.

"I got one for Sam, too, it's you, he'll like that." Starscream said, showing the tattoo of a yellow Camaro with black racing stripes. The glyphs of Bumblebee's name curved beneath it. Bumblebee had to admit it was a good likeness, and looked very cool, but that was not the point.

"You did that to Sam's body without his permission?" he said.

"He'll love it, Bumblebee, you know he will." Starscream said.

"Very likely, but you still did it without his consent." Bumblebee said. "What if Sam doesn't like tattooing?"

"Well, it's a bit late if he doesn't." said Starscream. He turned and pulled up his other sleeve, to reveal an Autobot tattoo on the other arm, as red as the one on Bumblebee's own head. "I even chose the symbol I know he'd prefer, so don't be so outraged." Starscream said.

"You should see mine." Said Miles. "It's dead cool, it was Starscream who suggested it. Ain't it neat?" He pulled up his other sleeve, and Bumblebee found himself looking at an intricately tattooed purple Decepticon symbol, which once again had Starscream's name in Cybertronian glyphs along the bottom edge.

Bumblebee's optics travelled from the bright tattoo up to Miles' grinning face, then further back to where Starscream stood.

"Please excuse me, Miles." said Bumblebee, glaring at Starscream. "I need to have a few words with Starscream in private."


	6. Chapter 6

Further Complications.

Chapter Five.

Bumblebee waited until Miles had gone out of the room before he spoke to Starscream.

"What is the nature of your claim on Miles, and did you see fit to explain your claim on him, and what that means to him?" Bumblebee demanded. Starscream lifted his chin.

"Well, I don't want to try and interface with him in any of the limited ways we could with mere squishies, I'll leave such revolting practices to you and Sam once he gets back in his body." Starscream said. Bumblebee stared at Starscream.

"Sam and I don't…I mean we never have…we don't!" said Bumblebee, flustered. Starscream snorted.

Why not? Any idiot can see how fond you two are of each other. Or is he your pet rather than your equal?" he sneered.

"Sam is my equal, but we haven't even thought or discussed anything like that!" Bumblebee protested.

"I'm not the only one to think so, either!" said Starscream. "It's surprising what you overhear in the rec-room when you're this size, and can hide, and people forget you're about."

Making a mental note to warn everyone about this, Bumblebee muttered "I don't know what Sam would think…"

"Then_ ask_ him!" Starscream said, rolling his eyes. Bumblebee noticed that since hanging around with Miles, Starscream had quickly picked up a lot of human gestures, expressions, slang terms, and not a few examples of profanity. "If you both keep tiptoeing around the issue, before you know it he'll be confessing his feelings for you at the end of his pitifully short lifespan and you'll regret not having asked before."

Bumblebee had to admit that Starscream might have a point there. Not that he was going to give him the satisfaction of saying so, anyway that was an issue for later.

"Stop changing the subject, Starscream, we're not here to discuss Sam and I, I want to know about Miles and you. What is the nature of your claim on him?"

"My claim is on his life." Starscream said, then put up a hand to forestall Bumblebee's protest. "If he is caught by one of my Decepticons, and they see his tattoo, they will think twice before even _thinking_ of harming him, and bring him to me. I, of course, will allow him to leave unharmed. This fleshy seems to be a unique example of his kind – intelligent, engaging, interesting to speak to. By giving him that tattoo, I am conferring my protection upon him. He has been helping me during this difficult time, it is only fair that I reward him."

Starscream elaborated.

Bumblebee had to admit that whatever way he looked at it, for Miles it would indeed be an advantage. He hung out with Sam and the Autobots enough that one day the claim-tattoos might very well make the difference between Miles living or dying.

"Okay, but what about the claim-tattoos you had done on Sam?" Bumblebee said. "Miles may have been willing to get his done, but Sam wasn't consulted. What if he hates them?"

"Not very likely." Starscream said. "I got the idea when Miles told me that Sam had been thinking of having your alt tattooed on one arm. I just…improved with the faction tattoo, and the name-glyphs to make it a claim-tattoo. If he really hates them, I'm sure your Ratchet is capable of removing mere tattoos from organic tissue."

"That is not the point!" Bumblebee huffed air through his vents and flashed his optics in exasperation. "He wasn't asked!"

"Well, asking him isn't easy, considering, and it's a bit late to worry about that now. He'll have to deal when he gets back in here, won't he?" Starscream said.

Again, Bumblebee had to admit that yes, the issue could not be dealt with until Sam got back in his body, so he decided to let the issue drop, at least for now.

"I'd better go and get Miles back in." Bumblebee told Starscream. "We need to discuss something else with him. School starts next week, and Sam will be expected to be there. When you're there, you will have to pretend to be Sam."

"What is this 'school?'" Starscream asked in puzzlement.

"I'll get Miles and he can explain it all to you." Bumblebee said, crossing over to the room to open the door. Opening it, he admitted Miles.

"Hey, Bumblebee, I've got a message from Jazz." Miles said. "He said there have been two more landings, some guys called Sunstreaker and Sideswipe. They're making their way here."

"Thanks for passing it on." Said Bumblebee, although he had earlier got the message himself over his comm. He was glad Jazz was out of the sparkling body he'd been transferred into while his own body was being repaired. He was used to Jazz being smaller than he was, admittedly, but not to him being _that_ much smaller.

"Come in and explain 'school' to Starscream, and what he'll need to do, would you?" asked Bumblebee.

As Miles took Starscream aside and began to explain, Bumblebee contemplated the meaning of the claim Starscream had made on Miles.

Had being forced to live in a human body taught Starscream the virtue of making a human friend? Would the friendship last once Starscream was back in his own body?

For Miles' sake, Bumblebee fervently hoped so.

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Sam came out of recharge that morning feeling…twitchy was really the best way to describe it. He was on-edge, felt irritable, and really couldn't explain it.

He had spent the week observing the people he was supposed to be in charge of, committing their names, duties, and alts to memory, because he really couldn't end up forgetting or miscalling them, it would call attention to himself, the wrong sort of attention. It had been Soundwave who had suggested it, and had brought out the Cassetticons in private, and had named them each in turn, so that Sam could learn who was whom amongst the small Decepticons who resided in Soundwave's chest compartment when they were not on duty.

Now he paced back and forth in Starscream's personal quarters, his agitation growing. Something was wrong but he couldn't put his finger on it. After a while, he couldn't take much more of pacing the same small room. Turning, he sent a databurst to open the door, he couldn't stand the confinement, he had to get _out!_

As the door opened he strode out, almost bumping into Thundercracker and Skywarp who were coming the other way. They took one look at Sam, then each turned, grabbed him by a wrist each, and started hurrying him along the corridor.

Sam almost resisted this manhandling, but they were going the way he wanted to go, away from the room, but they didn't stop there, they took him straight across the big room and out of the door, and once there, they began to run. Sam ran with them, not just because he had to or be pulled over, but because it felt like the right thing to do. They all pushed off the ground at the same time, launching into the air and engaging their thrusters, and as the ground fell away below them, Sam felt as if his agitation had been left behind with it.

As they rose higher, Sam felt the hands of the other two Seekers release his wrists, and they both dropped back behind him, leaving him as the leading point of a forward-facing 'V'.

"**You got involved in your work and left it too long again, didn't you?"** scolded Thundercracker in a databurst. "**I keep telling you that if you let yourself fly more frequently, you'd get less stressed."**

Sam almost exclaimed out loud. He had felt that way because of a need to fly? He could see why though, it was an amazing sensation to fly, to feel the air under your wings, to know that a slight change could make you drop, soar, bank and spin.

"**I forgot."** was all he could think to say. **"I was busy."**

"**As usual." **was Thundercracker's retort.

"**Sorry." **Sam said in a tone that meant he wasn't at all, a tone he'd found was quite accepted by the others, it was obviously something Starscream did.

"**Until next time, that is."** Thundercracker said back sourly, then fell silent.

He had no idea where they were going, was aware they had hit a speed that was faster than the speed of sound, that accounted for the quietness around them, and the need for databurst speech. They were high, so high, and he felt the other two Seekers draw closer, and for some reason wasn't surprised when he felt hands caressing his wings. It was Thundercracker.

"You need to relax." the blue-patterned Seeker purred. Suddenly it wasn't just Thundercracker's hands that were on him, it was his whole body as he lay atop him, hands swirling big circles on his wings. Legs twined and the hands left the wings to reach round to stroke his cockpit. Sam could not held letting out a squeal of pleasure as those hands expertly stroked and caressed, then there was a soundless blast of displaced air as Skywarp appeared above and to one side, and he felt the green-patterned Seeker stroke one of his wings and then trail the hand down his side.

Sam shivered, aware that he was losing control over his flying enough to start losing altitude, but they were so high he didn't think it would matter. Thundercracker and Skywarp didn't seem to be concerned anyway.

Skywarp suddenly vanished, appearing below him and upside-down, of all things, cockpit up, and as Thundercracker's hands slid back up onto his wings, he dropped down a bit and found himself pressed between the two Seekers. Skywarp was caressing the undersurface of his wings and pressing his cockpit against Sam's own, Thundercracker was caressing the top surfaces of his wings and kissing the back of his neck, and then Skywarp pressed upwards and kissed Sam, full on the mouth, his metal tongue snaking in and invading Sam's mouth.

All the stimulation combined with the release of tension was way too much for Sam, and he screeched as energy raced through his frame and he overloaded on the spot.

He came back online to find Thundercracker holding him under the arms, Skywarp supporting him on his back, they had gradually come down from the height, were circling back onto what he realised was familiar territory.

"Skywarp and I are going to head back to base." Thundercracker purred. "You should stay out and fly a little longer." he said. Sam nodded in agreement - there was something he wanted to do anyway and he didn't want to lose the freedom of the air just yet. At his acquiescence, the two other Seekers peeled off and flew away, occasionally caressing reach other and Sam guessed that now they had given him his overload, they would finish each other off.

He flew over territory made familiar when he'd been practicing to fly before he'd gone to 'be' Starscream. He headed for the Autobot base, thinking to check everything looked okay, and to let everyone there know he was still about.

He wondered how they had all done in his absence, wondered how Mikaela was, and Ratchet, and Optimus, of course. Not to mention how Starscream was doing in his body. Sam wondered idly how many more Band-Aids Starscream had needed and just what new abuses on his body he had made.

He overflew the Base, low enough to make Ironhide, at the gatepost, look up, who raised an arm in greeting. He rose up and them dipped down, flying low once he'd cleared the Base. Ahead he spotted two splashes of colour, one red, one yellow. He assumed the yellow one was Bumblebee, but the red one he didn't know, and he lazily turned to take a look. Maybe someone else had arrived, someone Bumblebee knew.

As he passed closer to them, they looked up, and Sam realised he was in error. The yellow mech was too big to be Bumblebee, both were new to him. Realising he might spook the pair by overflying them so low, he began to pull up, just as the yellow one flashed a look at the red one and grinned.

Whatever Sam was expecting them to do as he angled upwards, leaping up to seize his arms and wings with a yell was not one of them. Sam cried out in panic as he realised that they were destabilising him, and their hands on his wings were rough and harsh, completely at odds with the touches bestowed on him by Skywarp and Thundercracker earlier.

When he started to nosedive and spin, Sam screamed as the world turned into a confusing blur.


	7. Chapter 7

Further Complications

Further Complications.

Chapter Six.

Ratchet heard them before he saw them, and turned to greet them as they entered. Surely, having just landed, they couldn't have got into trouble or up to mischief already? That hope died as he saw Sunstreaker and Sideswipe come in, scratched, dirty, and grinning like loons.

"What have you two been up to? Only you two could find trouble just after landing!" he groused.

"Well, we couldn't help it if ol' Screamer decided to overfly us just as we were coming in, could we? He looked like he wanted to play, so how could we refuse?" grinned Sunstreaker.

"We got him good." Said Sideswipe. "Just for old time's sake. Bent his wings, so he'll have to _walk_ back to wherever he came."

**Ironhide, could you go out and look for Sam? The Twins jumped him!** Ratchet commed as he reached for his two largest wrenches. The Twins were so busy being pleased with themselves that they never saw them coming. Ratchet had only just finished explaining about the body-switch and why he was more mad than usual about what they had done when Ironhide brought in a shaking, distressed Sam, wings painfully bent at the edges, dirty, scuffed and scraped, and leaning on Ironhide for support.

Ratchet gave the Twins another scowl, then motioned for Ironhide to put Sam face-down on his operating table. He moved over to examine Sam's wings as the twins also walked over. Sam turned his head, saw them coming, and whimpered.

"Er-sorry about that, we thought you were Starscream." Sideswipe said, having the good grace to look slightly abashed. Sunstreaker, still grinning, just gave a shrug of his shoulders.

"I'll deal with you two later, your injuries are superficial, go and report in to Prime." Ratchet told them.

"What, looking like this?" Sunstreaker said in dismay, brushing one hand down the scuffing on his yellow hide.

"It's your own fault, and Prime has seen you looking worse, I know, so get out of here, or do you need more persuading? asked Ratchet, picking up another large wrench and eyeing the pair.

"Um – no, you've made your point." Sideswipe said, and they both rapidly headed for the exit. Ratchet snorted, put down the wrench, and began examining Sam's deformed wing-edges with gentle touches.

"Who – who the hell were they?" Sam asked, as Ratchet carefully dampened the sensations on the wings so he could start working on them.

"Those two are the Twins, Sunstreaker and Sideswipe, and you had the misfortune to meet them before I could warn them what had happened." Ratchet said. "They practice a form of martial arts called 'jet-judo' which is, as you found out the hard way, exactly what it sounds like – leaping on Seekers and forcing them to the ground. In the sky, a Seeker is in his element and has the advantage in a fight, but get them down to earth, and they are at a disadvantage." Carefully, Ratchet began straightening out the bends and creases the Twins had put in Sam's wings. "The Twins are slagging nuisances at times, but their Sparks are in the right place and honestly, sometimes the trine seem to treat it as a game. It's not often they would fly low enough to be caught from a straight ground-leap, they probably thought you were Starscream trying to tease them."

Sam winced as Ratchet forcibly bent his wing tip back into shape. Then he checked the connections and made sure everything was working as it should. The scrapes and scratches he checked but left: they were already beginning to self-repair. After half-an-hour he motioned Sam to get up and turn as he scanned him, which was the point at which Starscream walked in. He seemed agitated.

"I saw those twin nuisances have arrived. Makes me glad to have advance warning before…ah, I see you have not been so fortunate, Sam. How much damage did they do to my body, Ratchet?" Starscream asked, pulling a face and pacing up and down the med bay. Both Ratchet and Sam watched him with concern. There was something desperate about that pacing, something urgent.

"What is the matter with him?" muttered Ratchet to Sam, then said in a louder voice to Starscream "They've done nothing I can't repair."

Things abruptly fell into place for Sam. Starscream was acting in a very similar manner to the way he himself had been this morning, and Starscream had been a Seeker longer than Sam, or any member of his family, had been alive. Why would being in a human body for a week or so take away the longing that Sam figured Starscream was feeling? He turned, hoping to do something about it, but altitude and wind chill could be a problem. He didn't want his body to freeze to death.

He saw one of the beds Ratchet always kept ready for human patients…perfect. He grabbed the top sheet in one hand, grabbed Starscream with the other – who yelled in surprise and outrage – and wrapped the latter in the former.

"You need the sky." he told Starscream as he strode out.

"But I'm in your stupid ground-bound body, so I can't fly!" Starscream replied.

"I can though." Sam said, databursting Ironhide to drop the force-field. "So it just looks like I'll have to take you."

As he received notification from Ironhide that the field was down, Sam began running and launched himself into the air, engaging his thrusters, Starscream clasped in his hands as he headed up towards cloud level.

He felt Starscream grow still in his hands, felt some of the tenseness leave his frame, but not enough, it still wasn't enough. Sam realised that it wasn't just being in the air he needed, it was the flight aspect, being wrapped in a sheet and held by another was not close enough to real flight. Sam could only think of one possible solution, it was risky, he'd need more altitude to try it and it was still risky then, and might still not be enough.

Climbing in the sky, he hoped he wasn't misjudging his own capabilities, and hoped Starscream wouldn't get chilled. Carefully, he unwrapped the tense human from the sheet, pleased to note he had long sleeves and a jumper on anyway.

"This might be scary, but trust me." Sam said. He made sure he was high up, with no clouds to obscure him for at least a half-minute, then threw Starscream up above him, then angled to drop down about ten feet below him, so he would not fall to the ground, dropping at an equal rate to Starscream's rate of fall. He counted to twenty, turned upside down, grabbed Starscream and found enough space under his plating to put him there to warm him up. He was shivering when Sam put him in there, but after a while he warmed up.

"Do that again, it did help." Starscream said.

In fact, Sam did it three more times, but by then a combination of Sam's nerve beginning to break, Thundercracker calling in to find out if he was okay, and Starscream being satisfied, culminated in Sam landing once again. As he dropped down, circling around and spiralling lower, he commed Ironhide, who commed him back a few moments later to tell him the force-field was back down. Breaking out of the holding pattern, Sam angled down, did an elegant flip, and landed carefully.

"Showoff." said Ironhide good-naturedly, impressed in spite of himself. Sam put Starscream down carefully, then backed off.

"I had best go back, or Thundercracker will be wanting to investigate my absence. I 'll tell him what happened, the first part at least." Sam said. "After all, it's only fair to give them fair notice of those Twins."

Ironhide nodded. "Okay, I'll take this one in to Ratchet once the force-field is back up." he said, indicating Starscream who was still slightly chilled from the flight.

Nodding, Sam leaped into the air and flew off, and Ironhide raised the force-field again. Then he turned to Starscream, crouched, and held out his hands.

"C'mon, I'll get yer to Ratchet." he said. Starscream pulled a face but complied, climbing onto Ironhide's massive palms. He grabbed hold as Ironhide stood. It was disconcerting to be so small when he was used to being taller than all the Autobots, and said as much to Ironhide. "This is just going to take some getting used to." he finished. Ironhide nodded in agreement as he headed into the Base with the human cupped in his hands.

"For you and me both." He agreed.

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The weekend was fairly uneventful for Starscream, and filled with Miles explaining everything he could thing of about school for Starscream, and helping him get all Sam's homework assignments completed, although it ended up with Starscream helping Miles with Math and Science. Even in Sam's limited human body, Starscream seemed to already have the fundamentals worked out, and even described the Math that Miles had been groaning over for the last week as 'incredibly basic', and actually showed more patience than any of the Autobots would ever have credited Starscream with by explaining it to Miles step-by-step, until he had grasped how to do it.

"It would be a fine thing if Starscream's friendship with Miles lasts beyond this incident." Bumblebee remarked to Ratchet. "If Starscream discovers one human can be more than he ever credited them with, maybe he'll realise that other humans can be. If that small thread of understanding is reached…" he said, tailing off.

"Treaty negotiations have been built on far less, Bumblebee." Said Ratchet. "We can but hope, hope that this fragile friendship could be the beginning of a possible temporary ceasefire, and maybe something greater if we can point out to Starscream that the reason for the original conflict – possession of the AllSpark – is gone, along with Megatron and the AllSpark. All that the Decepticons have to fight for now is revenge, and even revenge can leave a bitter taste in the mouth if once it's over all you have to show for it is destroyed worlds and dreams gone up in flames."

"It would be an even more bitter experience if he were to lose, or if it turned into a permanent stalemate, with new members of each side turning up for millennia." Bumblebee observed. Ratchet nodded.

"I think that idea may try Starscream's limited patience." The negotiator-turned-medic stated. "If we can convince Starscream of the value of co-operation, it may be the chance for a new start for us all, humans, Autobots, and Decepticons. Think of what we could all achieve together. New worlds for us all, new adventures to be undertaken, and new experiences to be had for everyone."

Both Bumblebee and Ratchet looked over as the two human boys came out, talking animatedly, and hoped the friendship would endure.

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Monday morning dawned bright and clear, and Bumblebee drove both humans to the school. Miles had wanted to go in his new junker, to show it off, but it would also look odd if Bumblebee didn't accompany Sam, and was considered wasteful for them to both arrive in separate cars as they were friends. Eventually they worked out a compromise: Miles junker had been taken to Mikaela's Dad's garage for a service, valet, re-spray and wax, to smarten it up. Bumblebee would take them on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and they would go in Miles' car on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

They pulled up outside Mikaela's house, to pick her up, and she climbed in the front seat as Starscream moved to the back. She didn't make any effort to speak to him, and Starscream guessed she was still sore about his earlier attempt to get intimate with her. He decided he'd have to leave his own curiosity about the method unsolved, but this silence between them would seem unnatural, if things that Miles had told him were true, and he had no reason to believe otherwise. He had to do something, otherwise people were going to notice.

"Mikaela, I apologise for my actions of last week." He said.

"I should hope so." She said stiffly. Miles nodded – Starscream had explained to Miles what had transpired, so Miles knew what was going on.

"Mikaela, we are going to have to sort something out or…" He searched for the right expression and found it. "Or people are going to talk. They may assume you and Sam have broken up."

"So?" she asked raising a shoulder in a half-shrug. "I can always say that's the case, then Sam and I can "make-up" once he's back where he belongs."

"There's one major problem with that, Mikaela." Said Miles as Bumblebee turned into a parking space in the school lot.

"What's that?" she asked.

"If you've supposedly broken up with Sam, that'll make you fair game for every jock in the school, particularly Trent." said Miles. She looked pensive at that as Starscream said "Who or what is Trent?"

Miles looked up as Bumblebee killed his engine and flicked open his doors: Miles and Mikaela got out and Starscream followed a few seconds later.

"I'd rather you found out a different way, Star-er, Sam." Miles said. "But it looks as if you're about to find out the hard way." He pointed at the approaching group.

"Because here he comes now."


	8. Chapter 8

Further Complications.

Chapter Seven.

As the group came closer, one of them pushed to the front with a sneer and a swagger. Starscream presumed that this human with the obnoxious attitude was Trent, and was far from impressed.

He walked with the cocky assurance that Starscream had seen in many Decepticons, though only the most foolish or suicidal approached him with the same assurance and arrogant stance. The human's head hair was cut short and scrunched under a cap that Starscream suspected had not seen a washing machine for too long. He wore a sleeveless vest and loose pants, and much to Starscream's barely concealed revulsion, was slightly moist from his own dermal secretions – 'sweat' Starscream believed it was called.

"So, Mikaela, the vacation must have been enough for you to find out that wimp-boy there isn't your type. It's okay, Mikaela, I'll forgive you, I'll let you come back to me." He held out a beefy, hairy arm. "Come back to a _real_ man." He looked at Starscream and Miles as if they were something he had wiped from his shoe.

"You can piss off, you're not cool enough to hang with my crowd. Who wants to hang around with Mr Sucks-at-Sports and Mr Weirdo?" Trent said snidely.

"Sam and Miles are _each_ worth _two_ of you, Trent." Mikaela said, going around to Starscream and leaning against him, putting her arm around his waist. It was second nature for Starscream to loop his arm around her shoulders and pull her closer: Cybertronians and humans had some things in common, and signs of affection were just one of them. "I prefer their company to yours or _any_ of your cronies, Trent." Mikaela said, and tired to pull Starscream past, but Trent blocked her path.

"Ah, come on, 'Kayla, you don't need to play hard to get with me." Trent said, giving Starscream a shove. "You. Witwicky. If you know what's good for you, take a hike with your greasy friend."

That was Trent's _first _mistake.

If this had been Sam, he would have come up with a witty comment, or backed down and tried to go around the other way, but this was not Sam, but Starscream. Starscream had never been spoken to so disrespectfully in his long life by anyone other than Megatron. From Megatron, Starscream _had_ taken it, although with much hidden grinding of derma. He _wasn't_ about to take it without comment from this jumped-up, self important little brat of a squishy! He drew himself up to Sam's full height, and despite being shorter than Trent, still gave the appearance of looking down his nose at him.

"No, I am going nowhere, Trent." Starscream said, and the name oozed Starscream's dislike of the jock. "You can get out of my way, and you might want to learn to have a little more respect for females Perhaps if you had learned that lesson, you would by now have your own mate, instead of desperately grabbing after mine. Now, get out of my way!"

Starscream used the same tone of voice he had used on some of his Decepticons that he had felt compelled to take down as peg or two, a voice that dripped with the contempt for the individual in question. Although Trent was a jock, he could tell that the tone of Starscream's voice was derisory. Curling his lip in an angry snarl, he stepped forward, grabbed a handful of Starscream's sweater in one hand, flexed his fist, and used the hand to lift Starscream off the ground slightly. As always happened at the school, people could almost smell a fight brewing: a crowd had started to gather.

Again, if this had been Sam, even Mikaela's intervention wouldn't have stopped Trent, but once again, this was not the timid Sam, but the confident Starscream that Trent was dealing with.

"I'm giving you just one chance to put me down." Starscream said, still in a tone of disdain.

"Or else what, Witwicky?" Trent sneered. "I am so going to pound you into the ground. You need to be taught some respect for your betters." he said, raising his arm and cocking his fist.

That was Trent's _second_ mistake.

Sam would have tried to talk his way out of it, and probably ended up on the ground with a bloodied nose, but Starscream had not got to the position of Megatron's second by brains and talk alone. No, Starscream has risen through the ranks at some points by fighting, Starscream had _no_ compunctions about fighting, and fighting _dirty_ more often than not. Starscream had researched human weak points from the Internet, and had absorbed enough to apply what he had used.

Extending the first two fingers of one hand, Starscream jabbed them at Trent's eyes. Reflex made him pull back, meaning he had to release his hold on Starscream, who was ready for it and steadied himself as he landed. Starscream balled both hands into fists, and drove one into Trent's stomach before the jock had recovered himself: Trent doubled up as the wind was driven out of him by the sheer force of Starscream's punch.

By then, Starscream's other fist was on a trajectory that brought it into connection with Trent's jaw. As the punch connected, Starscream had already brought his first fist up again. This one hit Trent squarely on the nose a few seconds later, and the jock fell backwards into his friends with red pouring from both nostrils. He stared up dazedly for a few seconds, and then his head rocked back and he went limp.

Starscream just ignored the group, stepping out with his arm round Mikaela, until one of the others spoke to him.

"What…have you _killed_ him?" they asked, panicked.

"No, if he was dead, he would not be bleeding." Starscream said. "I merely thought he would make a better example if I left him alive." Then he turned away and walked off again with Miles close behind.

The crowd around them parted before Starscream like the Red Sea before Moses, but there were a few cheers and grins for Starscream from the crowd: it seemed Trent was feared but not _liked_ by more than one of his peer group. Mikaela giggled, but it was as much a giggle of fear as much as humor. She was pretty sure Starscream had meant every word of what he had said back there: Trent was only still alive because Starscream had _chosen_ not to kill him.

"You're going to catch it later!" she said to Starscream. "You'll get suspended for a few days but don't worry, it I think it was _worth_ it."

They went into homeroom, and Mikaela guided Starscream to his seat. The lecturer came in, took attendance, gave out the notices, and then they filed out for their first class, which was Math. This time it was Miles who guided Starscream to Sam's customary seat, which was next to him. Starscream found the lesson easier than Miles, but Miles was sure Starscream would help him out a little later. Then they went to second period, which was chemistry, but they had been there barely ten minutes when there was a knock on the door.

A student principal worker came in, went over to Starscream, and handed him a slip of paper. Miles recognised it as a call slip: news of the fight had obviously filtered through to the principal. He leaned over towards Starscream, because of course the Decepticon did not know the layout of the school.

"Go out of the door, turn left, follow the corridor round, second door on the right." she hissed. Starscream nodded, rose, and went out of the door.

The rest of that day Starscream spent attending the rest of the day's classes, and collecting the assignments he would otherwise miss due to the three-day suspension he had received over the incident. Starscream wasn't that bothered: he knew Miles would keep him updated about half the stuff, and the other half was stuff that was so basic to him that "Sam" could catch up easily.

At the end of the day they went back to Bumblebee, who first dropped off Mikaela at her house. She checked the status of Miles' junker with her father: it would be ready tomorrow, and Mikaela would drive it around to him in the morning. Miles nodded: he was cool with that. He knew Bumblebee could drop him off at his home.

Bumblebee then dropped Starscream off at the Autobot base, sending a comm to Optimus to explain what had happened at the school between he and Trent.

Miles had gotten out of the car to walk Starscream into the base: he came back out and got back into Bumblebee. He patted the dash much as he had seen Sam do. Much as he loved his old-new car, he couldn't help but wish that he had a car that changed into a cool alien robot as well.

He leaned back as Bumblebee quietly drove back towards Tranquility, to drop him off at his own place. He closed his eyes, relaxing, but he wasn't so out of it that he didn't noticed Bumblebee suddenly speed up.

"Huh-_wha?" _His eyes shot open and he turned his head as he suddenly heard sirens behind them.

"Hold on tight, Miles. We have _company_." Bumblebee said shortly. Looking back, Miles could see a black and white police cruiser was in pursuit, lights blazing, sirens at full volume.

"Hey, Bumblebee, what's up? Pull over, man, the cops are on our tail!" he said, trying to pull on Bumblebee's steering wheel. It didn't budge.

"_That is **not** the police!"_ Bumblebee said tersely.

Bumblebee began swerving as the black and white began to catch them up. To Miles's shock, it rammed them, an act repeated by a small red car just behind them that seemed to come from nowhere. Despite Bumblebee's best efforts, they were edged over to the side of the road, a side of the road that was ten feet above a field of maize. With a final heavy ram, the police cruiser managed to knock Bumblebee off the side of the road. Bumblebee turned over and over, Miles screamed in shock, and as Bumblebee hit the bottom he felt the seatbelt release and felt Bumblebee's doors fly open, and he went flying out into a sea of maize crop.

He was dazed, heard a racket behind him that suggested that Bumblebee wasn't the only car that had gone off the edge, heard the transforming sound. Was there more than one transformation going on or were his ears playing tricks on him? He heard clashing sounds, yells, engines, what sounded like shots, and then suddenly something red and mechanical was bending down, picking him up around the body, he struggled, the grip was tight, it pinched and he yelled. He felt himself lifted into the air, felt that his T-shirt had ripped almost right open as it flapped in the wind, and he felt chilled.

A voice coming from the one holding him said "This doesn't look like the Witwicky fleshling, Barricade."

"That's because he isn't, Swindle." said another harsh-sounding voice. "I don't recognise him at all. My scans indicate there is nobody else around, he must be some insignificant friend of his. Where the Witwicky boy is, I do not know but that creature is not him."

Miles looked about dazed, raised a hand to push his blond hair out of his eyes. The black and white was obviously a car that became a robot much like Bumblebee, the red car-robot holding him too, although it was smaller. However, for some reason Miles feared it more than the police car-robot. His fears seemed to be founded as the red car-robot looked from Miles to the police cruiser robot - Barricade? - and then back, and its fingers tightened further around him. To one side he spotted yellow armour, and movement, but he was not at the right angle to see Bumblebee properly.

"The Autobot scout will obviously be wanted for questioning. If this creature, however, is a nonentity, then nobody should miss him for a while." it stated. Miles wanted to speak, but the breath was being slowly squeezed out of him.

"Lord Starscream will likely have no interest in him and he is a witness to our presence and actions, an unwanted one." stated the red mech that Barricade had addressed as Swindle. "I have not found out the endurance level of this world's fleshies yet." the red mech stated. "I will dispose of the witness, and find that out for myself, by finding out how much damage it will take to kill him."


	9. Chapter 9

Further Complications.

Chapter Eight.

As Swindle crouched and pushed Miles to the ground in the maize, there was a cry from Barricade.

"Swindle, stop!"

Swindle turned his single large optic to regard Barricade.

"Why? Do you fear detection? This should not take too long." He said.

"No, Swindle, but remove his upper garment and let me see his arms!" Barricade commanded.

Miles felt himself lifted again, and felt his t-shirt torn none too gently from his body. The black and white mech reached out with a clawed hand. Miles shrank back but Swindle's grip prevented him from being able to escape the fingers of Barricade's hands. The claws touched Miles' skin, the grip tautened, but there was no pain as Barricade delicately pulled Miles' arm out straight and twisted it slightly, looking at the tattooed motif on the shoulder. Then Barricade repeated the action on Miles' other arm. Then he released the arm, and cupped his hands together, holding them under the hand that was gripping Miles.

"Swindle, give him to me. You have seen Starscream's claim-marks on the boy. It is not for us to decide his fate."

"He could have just seen the design somewhere else and had it copied. Do you want to see how angry Starscream would be if he thought us such easy dupes?" protested Swindle. Barricade bent his own gaze to regard Swindle.

"I would prefer he were angry at us for being fooled than be angry because we killed one he has claimed for himself." Barricade stated simply. "The former error can be corrected, but the latter cannot be remedied. Would you prefer our lives be forfeit for destroying one of Starscream's Claimed?"

"N-No Barricade, you are correct." stated Swindle, dropping Miles as if he carried some contagious corrosion. Miles felt himself hit the hard black hands of the other mech, whose fingers curled around him tightly enough to secure him, but not so tight as to hurt. Barricade strode to a place close to the road but concealed by bushes, and Swindle followed. Despite his predicament. Miles couldn't help but wonder what the farmer would make of the swathes of destruction the two mechs had wreaked in the maize. Barricade cut through the fencing, and then set him down.

"For what purpose Starscream has claimed you, I have no idea, but I will not go against him." stated Barricade to Miles. "Stand back: I will take you to Starscream myself." He said, and began his transformation sequence.

"What about the Autobot?" asked Swindle.

"Transportation has been arranged for that one." stated Barricade via the car radio, swinging his door open. "Get in." he told the human.

As Miles did so, he heard a muted bang: looking over, he saw that a green and black camouflaged form had appeared in the field: as he watched, it hauled the limp yellow Autobot scout into its arms, leaped in the air and disappeared with another bang.

"Ahh, Skywarp is big and fast and sneaky enough to get him moved fast." stated Swindle, also folding down into car form. He and Barricade accelerated out of the hole Barricade had put in the fence and joined the traffic flow on the road. Barricade activated his lights and sirens, and he and Swindle sped up as the traffic cleared to let them pass.

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Sam was enjoying a three-way cuddle in Thundercracker's quarters way too much - but didn't really care – when Skywarp straightened from where he'd had been stretched over he and Thundercracker, pulling back his hands from caressing a wing each.

"Lord Starscream, Barricade and Swindle are reporting that they have subdued the Autobot scout and request that I go to take him in." Skywarp said. Sam had been about to tell Skywarp to continue what he'd been doing, but the news that Bumblebee had been 'subdued' drove all thoughts of being stroked from his mind.

"Skywarp, go and get him and bring him here, Thundercracker, go to the med bay and send Dr Syn over, I want him to check the health of the scout when he gets here." Sam said. As Skywarp disappeared, Thundercracker gave him a strange look, and Sam realised he had slipped up in his portrayal, and allowed his concern for Bumblebee to show. Luckily, Sam was a swift thinker.

"A live Autobot is worth more to us in several ways than a dead one. Must I repeat myself or will you do as I command?" he snapped.

"Right away, my Lord Starscream." Thundercracker said sharply, turning and leaving, and Sam realised that he had been too curt with one of the mechs who was supposed to be as close to him – or closer - than a brother. Activating his comm he sent a message to Thundercracker.

**I apologise for my harsh words, TC.** He said, using the initialisation the older Seeker seemed to view as an endearment. **I promise the scout's continued health will be an advantage to us, and I promise to make it up to you later.** Sam had quickly mastered the art of using more than just words in a comm, sending Thundercracker several suggestive images to reinforce his words. The arctic-camouflaged Seeker sent back similar images and a satisfied sigh over the comm, and Sam realised his instincts had been correct: the blue Seeker was himself realising the potential value of a live hostage versus a dead youngling, and felt that his patience would be rewarded, and Sam fully intended to fulfil that expectation: once he'd got over his human inhibitions, Sam had developed a taste for interfacing Cybertronian-style.

At that moment there was a bang of displaced air, and Skywarp reappeared with the feebly-moving yellow scout held in his arms: Sam swept his hand towards the unoccupied berth and Skywarp obeyed the unspoken command, placing the yellow Autobot on the berth: on the large expanse the damaged scout looked painfully vulnerable.

Sam moved over, resting one hand on one of Bumblebee's arms.

"Do not fret, youngling, you are far more use to us alive than dead. A medic is on his way to heal your injuries." he assured his friend. he woild hae liked to assure him properly but with Skywarp there, he couldn't. At that moment Thundercracker returned with the big jolly brown medic Dr Syn in tow. His optics were drawn to the berth and their focus zerored in on his patient. Apparently ignoring the three Seekers – although it was merely that his mind was on the injuries before him – he moved over to Bumblebee.

His scanners whirred and his hands touched several areas of dented plating gently: Bumblebee flinched and cried out. Dr Syn muttered something comforting in Cybertronian and the yellow Autobot quieted. The medic expertly located a section of plating, made some adjustments and damped down the pain. He gently peeled back some plating, made a few visual checks, then turned to Skywarp, giving him a list of components. Skywarp stared at him in bafflement.

"Well, go and get them then." The medic said cheerfully. "I'd like to get started this joor, not the next." He said in that same happy tone, tipping back his head to lock his optics with the green Seeker's. Skywarp muttered something that didn't sound very polite, but disappeared in another bang of displaced air.

Turning back to Bumblebee, the medic removed several sections of dented armour, then extracted a flexible curved pad and what looked like a rubberised hammer and handed then to Thundercracker.

"I know you can bang out plating, so if you'd make a start on that, please, I can get on with the more delicate work." Thundercracker gave the medic a hangdog look, but got on with the task.

"Lord Starscream, if you would, you can come around here and hold his hand." The medic requested. Puzzled at the odd request, Sam eyed the medic as he went round. Why would the medic want Starscream to hold… The flicker of a shutter over one optic caught Sam's attention and a realisation hit him. He didn't know how, but somehow this medic knew not just that he was not Starscream, but who he actually was. His comm. beeped and a message from the doctor came up. _'I think he would find it comforting.'_ This only served to confirm Sam's realisation: Bumblebee would most likely offline in terror if the_ real_ Starscream were to take his hand.

Sam did not speak but looked at his yellow friend as Skywarp returned with the requested parts and Thundercracker continued banging dents out of Bumblebee's plating. The medic thanked Skywarp and then Thundercracker finished hammering out the armour. The medic retrieved some of the tools of his trade from Thundercracker, removed several tools from a storage compartment under an arm plate, and then politely dismissed both the other Seekers. Sam found himself glad that a Seeker's face could not smirk, because seeing Thundercracker dismissed from his own quarters by the doctor really made Sam want to grin. Neither Thundercracker not Skywarp protested, and both left via the door.

The doctor looked at Sam.

"The door is locked: now it is safe to speak to your friend and reassure him out loud." He said.

"How do you know?" Sam asked in astonishment. Dr Syn simply smirked – his face was capable of the action - and then surprised Sam

by using the human gesture of putting a finger beside his nose to indicate he would not be saying, then turned back to work on Bumblebee.

Sam did vocalise reassurances to Bumblebee, and the medic had announced he was almost finished repairing him when there was a commed request to open the door. Sam put a finger to his lips to warn Bumblebee, stopped holding his hand, took three steps back and allowed his visitors to enter.

Barricade walked in, with Swindle beside him.

"Perhaps you could solve a dispute between Swindle and I Sir." Barricade stated, with his hands behind his back. He brought them forwards abruptly, and Sam could see a human form clasped in them.

"This one bears a mark of your Claim: Swindle thinks he saw it and put it on himself because he thought it looked good: I say only you could arrange for such an accurate representation. Which of us is correct?" Barricade asked.

Looking closer at the human the Decepticon held, Sam recognised him. Half-naked, scared and dishevelled, the human was nonetheless familiar to Sam.

It was Miles.


	10. Chapter 10

Further Complications.

Chapter Nine.

Sam didn't even have to think about his next words and actions, for they came naturally.

"Give him here! Carefully!" he said, cupping his hands and walking towards the two mechs. Barricade lifted the pale human, carefully placing him into Sam's hands.

"See, this one is special to Lord Starscream, unlikely as it may seem, Swindle." Barricade chided the smaller red mech.

"I don't know why, it's only a squishy." grumbled the mono-optic mech. His gaze wandered over to where Dr Syn continued to work on Bumblebee, checking connections and putting armour back in place.

"He cares about a squishy and has the medic repair the Autobot: is Lord Starscream going _soft?_"

'_Oh no!'_ thought Sam. He didn't need dissent and uncertainty about Starscream's loyalties and suitability to lead the Decepticons. Thankfully, Sam had been thinking, and had an answer to Swindle's remark.

"As usual, Swindle, you only see what is in front of your optic, and not the reason for it. If the Autobot is to answer my questions, it is better that he be healthy to start with, in case stronger persuasion is needed to encourage him to use the vocal processor he was built with. That is if I do not find a better use for him, which I believe I will, and this squishy will also prove useful." He bent his head to look at Miles, who was still half-terrified, but half-awed at Sam.

Sam looked back up at Swindle, very glad that Soundwave had that morning told him he would be pursuing a new project and why.

"Perhaps you are unaware of the fact that all fuel is becoming scarce: luckily for you, Soundwave is pursuing a new source of fuel for you groundlings. However, for my wing-brothers and I, until a suitable alternative is found, we must either steal the air fuel – which is becoming increasingly difficult – or trade for it. Trading with humans would be fairly fruitless, but trading with the Autobots may be possible – especially if we have something they _want_."

He could see from Barricade's face that the Police cruiser had caught on, but Swindle still appeared puzzled. Sam inclined his head to look at Miles again. He now needed to explain why he wanted Miles kept alive, and the good thing was that Sam had an advantage over Starscream: he knew a good deal about Miles. Such as that Miles had seen how Sam interacted with Bumblebee, Miles had envied Sam his Cybertronian friend, and that Miles was a quick learner.

"This is no ordinary flesh-creature, this squishy is called Miles Lancaster. He is a close personal friend of the Witwicky squishy, who is effectively an honorary Autobot. As such, he, like the youngling scout, is more valuable to us alive and intact. I propose to contact the Autobots and offer to swap the two for a certain amount of aircraft fuel, groundling's fuel, and anything else we need." He raised Miles up to his face, inclined it towards him.

"In addition, I have personal reasons for claiming this fleshling as my own."

As Sam had hoped, Miles had caught on, raising his hands to caress and stroke Sam's face the same way Sam often stroked Bumblebee's: Sam could understand now why Bumblebee enjoyed it so much. He allowed it to continue for about thirty seconds, than reluctantly returned the hands to chest-level, holding them out from his body.

"Medical supplies, too." Spoke up the medic, who was putting his equipment away. "We could use some components that I can work into spare parts we may need. I can give you a list."

Sam inclined his head.

"Very well, we shall add that to the list." He said.

"How about some energon?" suggested Barricade, his glossa slipping out to run over the edges of his dermaplating. "I have heard that Ratchet's energon brewing skills are second to none."

"Then we shall ask for some of his best then." Sam said.

"I think the scout may benefit first from a couple of hour's recharge." The medic said. "I also think the squishy may benefit from something to eat."

"Then take the scout to recharge, and I will join you with the squishy in a while." He said. Miles look worried.

"What're you going to do to me, sir?" he fretted. Sam raised a finger to stroke Miles' long blonde hair.

"You are my claimed. Just call me by my name, Starscream." He told Miles. "I believe you have an interest in aircraft of all kinds, but particularly of the military variety?"

"Yeah." Said Miles.

"Then I am sure you would not object if I went for a flight in my F-22 mode, and took you along as company?"

A big grin spread across Miles' face and his eyes lit up.

"Cor, yes please, Starscream!" he said.

"Barricade, I believe the human would appreciate assistance in getting into my cockpit. You will assist."

"Yes my Lord Starscream." Barricade stated. Sam took a step towards the door, then paused to regard the smaller red mech as the medic stepped past, leading Bumblebee by an arm.

"Oh, and Swindle? I suggest that no harm come to either of these two from you during their brief stay here: they will be useful bargaining chips, and well bargaining chips are the best sort. I will not tolerate you disobeying my direct orders: you will stay away from _both_ of them. You asked earlier if I was going soft: should harm come to either of them you will find out how erroneous that assumption is, for if you are lucky you will live to regret it. If you are not, the doctor will soon have a source of spare parts to salvage. Do I make myself understood?"

"Perfectly, Lord Starscream, I won't harm them!" Swindle said, fear evident in his voice, before turning and almost fleeing from the room. The doctor and Barricade turned to look at Sam.

**You enjoyed that, didn't you?** Commed Dr Syn with a grin.

**Just a bit.** Sam commed back.

The doctor continued to lead Bumblebee over to the medical bay as Sam headed for the Decepticon base's makeshift runway with Barricade following behind.

oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo

Sam used his half-hour in the air with Miles to catch up on what news there was since his impromptu visit to the Autobot base care of the Twins. Miles thoroughly enjoyed the experience, but after half an hour Sam decided to land: Miles could do with some sort of upper body covering, something to eat and probably some sort of rest after his earlier capture.

Taking him into the med bay, he handed him to Dr Syn, who assured Sam that he had some food suitable for human consumption somewhere plus a few items of clothing they had found here and there: the medic had had the foresight to gather human clothing and vacuum-packed and tinned food in case human prisoners were taken at some point. As the medic took Miles out to get some food and a T-shirt or shirt, Sam approached Bumblebee, who was recharging on the floor, recharging wires clipped to his body.

Sam carefully got down onto the floor next to the little yellow scout: Sam was getting used to moving around in Starscream's body. Reaching out one of the big hands, he reached out to caress Bumblebee's rounded silver face.

Bumblebee's optic shutters fluttered a bit, and then shot open: the scout's voice rose in a keen as he scrambled to a crouch and began to bring his cannon online. Sam belatedly realised that in his post-regenerative confusion the Autobot scout had forgotten that this was Sam and not Starscream.

Sam backed off, speaking hurriedly.

"Bumblebee, Bumblebee, it's me, Sam, buddy, don't you remember? I'm in Starscream's body and he's in mine, don't you remember, it happened after Mikaela and Optimus were returned to their own. Starscream tried to kidnap me, got hit by lightning, switching both of us over, remember?"

Sam watched the scout anxiously but it seemed his words at least served to trigger Bumblebee's memories, as the little scout calmed and stopped keening.

"Sam, you scared me!" he said. Both Dr Syn and his subordinate, Headfixer, came into the med bay at a run from two different directions, both comming urgently, wanting to know what was happening.

"I touched him unexpectedly, he was startled." Sam said, not knowing how much the other medic did and did not know, and not willing to gamble that Headfixer knew as much as Dr Syn, and was as tolerant as the senior medic.

"Please don't do that too often, Starscream." grumbled Headfixer. "I nearly shorted the memory chip I was working on."

"It's okay, bring the squishy, I will now contact the Autobot base and negotiate with them for the supplies we need." Sam said. "I believe the communications desk is in here?"

"Indeed it is, Lord Starscream." Stated Dr Syn. "I will bring the boy. Headfixer, you start up the array and contact the Autobot base." Headfixer dipped his head in acknowledgement of both the order and Dr Syn's seniority, and walked towards the back of the med bay. Sam commed reassurances to Bumblebee, taking his arm and leading him gently in the smaller doctor's wake.

Headfixer brought the communications system online, and Dr Syn brought Miles as Headfixer opened a channel to the Autobot base. Mirage's face appeared. He blinked in surprise as he registered the source of the communication and the presence of 'Starscream'.

"I have called Optimus Prime, so he can speak to you as leader to leader." stated the softly-spoken one-time noble. "I am transferring your communication to his office now."

There was a brief flicker, and Sam was facing the familiar figure of the Autobot leader. Sam realised that Optimus could not know about Dr Syn and Headfixer's presence, and acted quickly to unobtrusively warn him.

"Ah, Optimus, Prime, this is Starscream, I am contacting you to arrange a little trade." He pulled Bumblebee into the frame and picked up Miles in the other hand and brought him into view as well. Sam knew that Optimus would surmise from the mode of address that he was not alone.

"We were aware that Bumblebee had been attacked, it was not difficult to guess who by." Optimus replied. "If either Miles or Bumblebee are harmed, we will be forced to act against you." The Autobot leader stated.

"Do not be concerned on that point, I am well aware that damaged goods are of little use in a trade." Sam replied. "The human has a few scratches and bruises that I am assured will self-repair, and I myself personally supervised the repair of the damage caused to your scout during his capture." Sam replied.

"Now, I am proposing this: that we generously return these two to you in return for a month's worth of air and groundling fuel, plus half of your medic's latest brew batch of both high and low-grade energon, plus a list of medical supplies and raw materials my medic will provide you with."

"It seems you want a lot for the return of our scout and the human left in his care." Optimus stated. "We will discuss how much of each commodity can be bought, but I think we will need more than just the two standing there. Trade can take many forms: perhaps time can also be used as currency, for example, I am willing to consider it a fair bargain if you throw in a month-long cessation of hostilities against both the humans and our forces."

"Then let us negotiate and come to a settlement that pleases us both." Sam stated, knowing that to accept too quickly would be suspicious to the Decepticons.

Half-an-hour later, Sam and Optimus had come to an agreement: the medical supplies they wanted, plus a third of Ratchet's latest batch of both low and high-grade energon, and three weeks worth of fuel for the flying and non-flying contingent of Decepticons. In return, they would hand over Bumblebee, Miles, and call a two-week ceasefire, effective immediately.

"If you bring in Bumblebee and Miles, you will be made welcome, covered by Protocol Five of the Treaty of Iacon." Optimus stated. "Under that Protocol we are obliged to provide you and any who accompany you with any fuel and repairs necessary."

Sam nodded.

"I would like to bring my wing brothers, Thundercracker and Skywarp." He stated.

"Very well, Starscream. When will you be returning Miles and Bumblebee?" he asked.

"Tomorrow morning, when we have all had an opportunity to recharge." He stated. "Miles and the youngling will be well cared for."

"Then I look forwards to seeing you tomorrow, we will be at the gate 0900 local time tomorrow. Ratchet would also like to speak to you at some point tomorrow as well, he has something to show you. Optimus Prime out."


	11. Chapter 11

Further Complications.

Chapter Ten.

A/N: **Bold Text **is com/data burst speech.

It was quite a few hours after the call to the Autobot base that Sam went into recharge, for there were several things he needed to do in preparation for the ceasefire, some personal business he wanted to settle with Bumblebee, and a little matter of keeping a promise he had made to Thundercracker earlier that day.

The first task wasn't so bad: as the leader he was in a position to delegate many tasks on to everyone else, after telling them what the ceasefire was for and expounding the benefits to them, the other Decepticons were quite willing to pitch in and do as they were asked to get things organised.

Skywarp and Thundercracker he had ordered to go and recharge, as they would be doing a lot of flying quite soon, and he wanted them well-rested in preparation. When he told them what flying they would be involved in, neither had found any reason to protest. Once they were both recharging, he had gone back to Bumblebee, who, once he got used to the idea, was not averse to a little experimentation.

Sam had found out several things himself during that little session: the first was that with a Seeker's wide handspan he was able to far more effectively caress and stimulate Bumblebee's sensitive spots than he could ever have hoped to as a human, and in addition, Bumblebee had either read up plenty about Seekers, or he was unnaturally gifted at working out where on a flyer was sensitive: not that Sam either knew or even _cared_ which once Bumblebee put those nimble fingers to work on his fuselage.

It was a major change of perspective as well as of experience, Sam reflected afterwards, for Bumblebee and he to be on their sides during their interactions, and more so for Bumblebee to be lying on Sam's chest. Not that 'Bee had never been on top in previous liaisons: it was quite common for Bumblebee to prop himself on all fours in a crouch as Sam had lay beneath him, but to have Bumblebee lying _on_ him, resting his entire weight on him, was physically impossible when Sam was a human.

In this Seeker body it was, well, _different_, Sam reflected, as he held the yellow scout atop him with one hand as the small Autobot slid into recharge with his head resting on Sam's shoulder, his upper body and hips sprawled over the large expanse of Seeker beneath him, his legs and feet between Sam's thighs. It was more than once that Sam had gone to sleep on Bumblebee's chest with the scout crooning affectionately to him through his microphone. It was odd, but very satisfying, for the positions to be reversed this time. Sam raised his free hand to stroke Bumblebee's smooth helm.

It was with reluctance afterwards that Sam put Bumblebee into a recharge chamber to get fully powered up for the next day. Sam himself went in for two hour's recharge time, after which he woke and commed for Thundercracker and Skywarp to join him outside.

They spent a good time in the air together, during which time they ran hands over and under each other's wings, up and down each other, took turns to fly canopy-to-canopy, and back-to-back, and wingtip-to-wingtip. This was unlike the time that Thundercracker and Skywarp had taken Sam up when he was sky-needy and tense: that time they had addressed Sam's need while for the time being pushing aside their own. This time, Sam returned the caresses they gave him, finding that Skywarp was highly sensitive around his vents and that Thundercracker seemed to be highly sensitive pretty much everywhere that Sam touched him. The three flew around each other, caressing and stroking each other, flying by instinct what would have otherwise appeared to be a carefully choreographed aerial dance, never fouling each other, never colliding or clipping each other.

Of course the wings and cockpit canopies were a place Sam had come to understand were very sensitive in every Seeker, but Sam had never thought of lifting the canopy up. It was Thundercracker who gave Sam a wicked smile, slid under him, and slipped a hand under his canopy. The sensations that flooded through Sam gave him just about enough time to gasp, for he found it so sensitive that he overloaded on the spot. The three of them had all been in the air at the time: he had come around to find himself lying face-up on Skywarp's back and Thundercracker flying above him, holding him so he didn't slip off, with a very smug look on his face. Sam had promptly began flying using his own engines, dived for Thundercracker, and laughingly returned the favour.

Giggling, Sam had then found out that he was not the only one who would overload when stimulated thus internally, for Thundercracker himself screeched and then it was Sam and Skywarp who were supporting the blue Seeker. Thundercracker had onlined himself quite swiftly after, and then had sent a sly com to Sam.

**We can't leave Skywarp out, it would be unfair. Come on, let's overload him, too! **

They had both dived for the same spot at first, the closest they came to fouling with each other, although once Sam realised that Thundercracker was going for the cockpit as well, he had changed his focus to the wide expanse of Skywarp's beautifully sensitive wings. He flew to one tip, drew a hand down it to the middle of the green Seeker's back, and back up the other wing: Skywarp's whole body shook, though Sam couldn't be sure if that was down to his caress or what Thundercracker was doing. A quick dive under the two was all Sam needed to notice that Thundercracker's clever glossa was as busy with the green Seeker's vents as one of his hands was busy within the confines of his cockpit.

Swooping back up to Skywarp's dorsal surface, Sam planted one hand on Skywarp's neck and the other on a wingtip, silently thanking whichever God there might be for the span of a Seeker's reach that made this possible. He drew both hands down slowly, and Skywarp let out a moan and shook some more. There was a swift jerk of Thundercracker's head and Skywarp's moan climbed to an audio-piercing shriek before the green Seeker suddenly went limp beneath Sam.

He couldn't help it, it was instinctive for Sam to grab for the Seeker's shoulders, but he needn't have worried: Thundercracker was already supporting Skywarp from below, and once again, the green Seeker was swift enough to engage his own engines upon coming online again. Thundercracker pulled away as Skywarp began flying under his own power, just as Sam realised suddenly that he was tired. He wondered how he could convey that thought without seeming weak, but he needn't have worried as Thundercracker drew up alongside him so their wings actually slightly overlapped and looped a long blue arm around him.

Sam almost panicked, fearing they would fall, but then another weight - Skywarp - settled atop them, a green-patterned arm snaked about him, and then –

Then they were flying lower, towards the Decepticon Base, as the other two released their holds as swiftly as they had engaged them, peeling away to give each other manoeuvring room.

**Thank you, Skywarp, I suggest we all use the remaining time to gain some recharge before flying to the Autobot base tomorrow, after all, once we have been refuelled, we can do this again as much as we like, without needing to worry about a shortage of fuel.** Said Thundercracker.

He sent Sam – and presumably Skywarp – a series of highly suggestive images that as a human would probably have left Sam wondering where to put his face. In this body, however, Sam found himself looking forward to it, not to mention raising questions about a Seeker's libido, and not for the first time. Were_ all_ Seeker's sexual appetites like this, Sam wondered, or was it just these three that made rabbits look almost celibate by comparison?

They all angled down and landed, making their way to their separate rooms, though not without plenty of fuselage and wing-caresses before they separated. Sam didn't even bother moving Bumblebee out of the recharge chamber, just dragged him back atop his chest before dropping the recharge chamber lid back down and hitting a deep restful recharge before the unit had adjusted its output to compensate for two 'bots sharing the berth.

oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo

Sam sat up as the berth reached the end of its preset cycle, feeling refreshed and pretty much ready for anything – especially the visual promise Thundercracker had made earlier. However, Optimus and the others would be waiting at the gates at nine in the morning local time, and it would not be good to be tardy. Business before pleasure, he told himself, turning his processors to the tasks of that morning.

They would have to travel in jet form, except for Sam, who would fly above the cloud cover carrying Bumblebee. Sam had never been so glad that it would be cloudy, he didn't want to be late and flying Bumblebee to the Base would be quicker than asking Bumblebee to drive there. Sam had a quiet word with Thundercracker, asking him to convey Miles, promising that the human would keep his hands to himself unless told otherwise.

"I must say, letting the squishy touch my controls could be an interesting experience." Thundercracker murmured, and Sam made a mental note to warn Miles not to be surprised or scared if Thundercracker invited Miles to touch him and then suddenly seemed to drop out of the sky. He also commed Skywarp to keep an optic on Thundercracker and help him keep airborne in just such an eventuality, not that he should need it, Thundercracker would probably have the sense to fly up high enough that he'd re-online while still in the air. Sam couldn't help but grin a bit: even two hours away from business, Thundercracker's mind was occupied with pleasure.

All the preparations had been made and it was time to leave. Miles was securely strapped into Thundercracker's seat, and both he and Skywarp had been warned by Sam about the possibility of what might happen. Sam nodded to Bumblebee after mentally ticking off his inner inventory, sliding his arms around the Autobot scout's chest, and taking off.

All three fliers had half-full tanks, and Dr Syn had privately informed Sam that that had taken the last of the aircraft fuel the Decepticons possessed. Sam nodded, making a mental note to ask Ratchet and Optimus Prime to "accidentally" give the Decepticons more air fuel than originally intended. Having tasted the joy of flight, Sam could not willingly participate in a deal that might leave the three on the ground for as long as they could stand because they only had enough fuel for essential flights. It also made a lot of practical sense to Sam: keeping the Seekers in fuel might keep them from attacking a fuel depot in desperation – an attack that could potentially cost human, Autobot and Decepticon lives.

They all reached the Autobot base in the time Sam had calculated they'd need, all landing, one at a time, on the small runway the Autobot base possessed, just outside the gates. Sam put Bumblebee down, went over to Thundercracker, and lifted out a slightly nervous Miles: Thundercracker _had_ given him permission to touch the controls during the flight in. He and the other two approached Optimus Prime, wrists crossed at waist-level in the widely accepted gesture that meant you intended no threat: it was Bumblebee who had suggested to Sam that the three seekers reinforce their words of peace with this gesture. The Autobots knew it was Sam of course, but the gesture would be noticed by the two other Seekers by it's very absence if he omitted it. For now at least the pretence would have to be kept up.

Optimus gestured to the open gates, where Ratchet waited.

"Please come in and be welcome: your first stop will be the med bay where you will all be fully fuelled and given a medical check, Ratchet insists. Then, Leader Starscream, I will ask one of my officers to show your wing brothers to the med bay while Ratchet and I speak with you in private, to discuss any final details, then we can all discuss anything else in my office over some of Ratchet's best low-grade." he said.

Sam nodded and led the way in, approaching ratchet. "This way, please." Ratchet said out loud, but Sam was far more interested in the content of the com Ratchet send him.

**Sam, we think we have found a way to switch you back. When Thundercracker and Skywarp are enjoying the recreational facilities, you can fill Starscream in on what's been going on, and then we can swap you back.**


	12. Chapter 12

Further Complications.

Chapter Eleven.

A/N 'Murphy's Law' states that _"Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong."_

Once again, **bold type** sentences indicate databurst/commed speech.

**What do you mean, you _think_ you've found a way? **Sam commed back to Ratchet nervously. **Don't you _know_? **He asked as he followed Ratchet, the other two falling into step behind him.

**We can't really test it, for a start there's a good chance we'll only get one shot at it before one of the components melts, and it took long enough for us to make that one! All my simulations suggest that the worst that'll happen is nothing. **Ratchet told Sam.

Sam just hoped that Ratchet's simulations would be accurate. Murphy's Law suggested that this was all too simple, that the one scenario that Ratchet's simulations had not picked up would be the messiest, most awkward, and most likely thing to happen. Sam knew, however, that Ratchet would have done his best to reduce any risk.

Sam just had to hope Murphy was looking the other way at the time.

As they entered the med bay, Sam could see Cliffjumper standing to one side wielding a refueling wand. Yes, they had been promised a chance to refuel, that was right. Sam stepped over and indicated to Cliffjumper where his refueling vent was: Cliffjumper inserted the wand without comment.

Sam had only once had a full tank in Starscream's body, it was a pleasant sensation and one he reveled in as Cliffjumper finished and he stepped away. He swiftly cleared the space to allow Thundercracker to receive the same treatment, then waited as first the blue Seeker and the green were themselves refueled. As he waited, Ratchet scanned him and pronounced Sam fit and well looked after. Thundercracker and Skywarp were in a similarly good condition, and Ratchet gave Cliffjumper permission to take them off to enjoy the recreational facilities, before waving Sam through to the small secondary med bay.

It was mainly taken up by a weird clutter of wiring and machinery that could only be the switchover device Ratchet had mentioned, as well as a human-sized bed and a Seeker-sized pallet, both within reach of some of the trailing wires. Starscream, in Sam's own body, was sat on the human-sized bed bouncing up and down with impatience.

"Well, hurry up and switch me back, I've had enough of being in this disgustingly meaty form, even if I _have_ learned how to balance in it by now!" he said.

"Hold on, Starscream, Sam needs to appraise you of what's going on in your Base and you need to tell him what's going on in his life first." Ratchet said. Starscream gave an irritated scowl: either the Decepticon leader had practiced in a mirror or had used the expression in Sam's body enough that it was second nature to him by now.

"Get him to databurst the information to you, and I'll summarize his situation, it's not that interesting that I can't get it over with in five minutes. Once I'm back in my body, you can databurst the relevant information to me." Starscream told Ratchet "If he explains the ins and outs of my troops and what they have been doing, we'll be here all night!"

Sam was forced to agree with Starscream on that last statement: there was never a dull moment in the Decepticon base, not with the grudges, political in-fighting and one-upmanship Sam had noted during his time there. He also realized the Cybertronian memory was a far more efficient system than the human one as he found the relevant memories, converted them to a transferable form, and put them in a file: all this took just a few seconds. Then he sent the file to Ratchet.

"Okay." Said Sam to Starscream, sitting on the floor to bring his head down closer. "What's been going on in my life?"

"Okay, first of all, I'd better tell you about these." Starscream said, showing Sam both the Autobot symbol on the one arm and the Camaro on the other, the latter with glyphs that Sam recognized as the Cybertronian for Bumblebee's name under it.

"Bumblebee said you might be annoyed." Starscream said.

"No, it's cool, but you do realize that you, the Decepticon leader, are wearing the Autobot symbol?" Sam giggled. "I guess I'm lucky you took my preferences into account." He looked again. "Yeah, I like."

"All the more reason to get me back in the body I belong in!" snapped Starscream. Sam noticed that Starscream was more waspish than he expected, and suspected the sky-hunger was wearing down on him again.

"So, how's school going? Assignments?" he asked.

"You have four, I've done your math one already, simple really. And oh yeah, you've been…what's the words again…that's it, you've been 'suspended' till Thursday?"

"_What_?" yelped Sam. "You got me _suspended_? What for, what did you _do_?" he asked.

"Some squishy called 'Trent' annoyed me, and then had the temerity to threaten me. I…I believe the expression Miles used when talking about it was that I "punched his lights out?" Humans don't have much stamina do they? A couple of light taps and he temporarily went offline."

"You punched out Trent?" Sam asked, a broad grin spreading over his face. "I wish I'd been there to see that! I think that would be _worth_ a three day suspension!" he said.

" I believe Bumblebee may have recorded it, I'm sure he'll play back the holos for you." Starscream said. "Your parents and Mikaela are fine and I believe Mikaela said that your skinny little pet Mojo is well as well. Anything else you want to know or can we just get ON with the switchover?" Starscream's voice was acerbic.

"Okay, I guess we should, it's only fair." Sam said, getting up and lying down on the Seeker-sized pallet, although he felt a twinge of disappointment at missing out on the promised fun with Thundercracker and Skywarp. Ratchet moved over, setting several wires on the machine to the head of Starscream's body using magnetic clamps, then handing Starscream a helmet which he wedged on the head of Sam's body.

"Sam, I hope Starscream will be able to open this file because I can't." Ratchet said as he checked the positioning of the clamps.

"That's because it requires Starscream's personal code to open Ratchet. "Sam told him. "I figured he'd want at least some portions kept private, don't worry, there's nothing in there that'll compromise the Autobots or Earth in there."

He looked at Ratchet. "I was always taught that you don't read other people's diaries or their mail without their permission."

Although Ratchet's expression didn't change, Sam had the oddest feeling that if the medic could have gone red, he would have.

"Okay, are you both ready?" he asked as Starscream lay down on the human bed. Both Sam and Starscream answered in the affirmative.

Ratchet went over to the machinery, flicked some switches and turned a dial. The machine hummed louder and louder and a crackling could be heard. Sam felt a jolt run through his body, powerful enough to lift him from the surface he was on, much like the unpleasant jolt he sometimes encountered when he was suddenly woken while dozing off by a restless leg, but not painful. Then there was an incandescent blaze of sparks as something inside the mechanism burned out.

"Sam?" said Ratchet, bending over the human, who dragged a hand over his eyes.

"Uuugh…yes Ratchet? It's me." Sam groaned. "I'm back and it's odd seeing you so big again."

Starscream unshuttered his optics and began pulling the magnetic clamps from his helm.

"Okay, Ratchet, send that file, I want to know what's been going on." Starscream said, standing a bit unsteadily and stretching. Ratchet's optics dimmed as he sent, and Starscream took ten seconds to analyse the contents. He turned his red optics on Sam.

"I see you've been having a lot of fun playing me. It seems you did not disappoint my wingbrothers expectations. I am glad of that." he said.

Sam felt his now-human cheeks go red.

"Some warning might have been nice?" he said. Starscream's only response was to chuckle. Then he nodded and refocused, once again gazing at Sam, though the look had changed from amused to…respectful?

"I like the way you handled Swindle, Sam, and kept him away from my squishy, Miles." Sam blinked, not missing the possessive. Starscream chuckled again. "Spare parts…I must remember that threat." He crouched to bring his face closer to Sam and pointed at him with one sharp finger. "You have a devious mind, Sam, we'll make a Decepticon of you yet. Now, if you don't mind, I need to fly and…well I'll need my wingbrothers for the other." Starscream got up, leaving Sam a bit dazed, more than a bit jealous, and not sure if the Seeker had just complimented or insulted him.

He didn't know if it was a side effect of the transfer or whether Starscream had been pushing his body to its limits, but Sam now felt _exhausted_. He took off the tight helmet, rolled over on the bed, and dropped into an exhausted sleep.

When he awoke, he was disappointed to find it was all over. The negotiations had taken place, the Seekers had, by all accounts, performed a beautiful but explicit dance in the air, then they had refuelled, talked with Optimus, and left, carrying all the fuel they could, although Skywarp had made four trips thanks to his warping capability. The ceasefire was still in place for another twelve days, and Sam could relax, knowing that, in theory at least, he was safe for the next twelve days and maybe more. After all, who said there only had to be one ceasefire?

He smiled sadly as he recalled the glorious dreams of flying he'd had. They were lovely dreams, but they made his heart ache, for it was an ability he had had, and now that ability was gone…

Pushing the thought aside he got up and went to find Mikaela. It didn't matter, he was human again, if humans had been meant to fly themselves, they would have had wings. He was sure the dreams, and the painful feelings they caused, would fade with time.

Unbeknownst to Sam, the feeling was just the first symptom that his problems had only just begun.

A/N Keep an eye out for the sequel, "Sky Hunger" coming soon.


End file.
